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Frederick Douglass Narrative

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Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is widely considered an autobiography. It is the story of his life from the time he was born as a slave to his escape to freedom. It also includes a strong political message. When Douglass wrote this book in 1845, slavery was still legal in much of the U.S. He became a public speaker and more to try to stop it. He believed that if he showed people what slavery was really like, people could understand why it was such a big problem. Douglass’s Narrative isn’t just about slavery. As a historical document, it paints a powerful picture of what it was like to be a slave, how the world looked from the eyes of a slave, and what kind of place America was when …show more content…

They all did this because they knew that people didn’t really argue in favor of slavery as it actually was. Instead, people who were pro-slavery imagined a form of slavery where black people were content with being slaves. Slavery, according to Douglass, was one and the same with deception, so it's not a surprise that people like Mr. Covey are master deceivers. But in a way, this makes Douglass's job a little easier. All he had to do was truthfully describe the things he had seen and experienced as a …show more content…

But part of Douglass's journey, believe it or not, is his realization of what slavery really is. When Douglass is young, he doesn't really understand what it actually means to be a slave. He only starts to realize when he sees his Aunt Hester being whipped by his master. His real awakening to suffering occurs when he goes to work for Covey, and it's here that he learns to defeat suffering. When he vows to die rather than let himself be whipped again, he obtains the strength of will he eventually needs for his path to freedom. He could then focus on the next theme of his visions of America.
The American constitution was amended after the Civil War, but in the original version, not only was slavery still legal, but a slave was considered to be three-fifths of a person. So Frederick Douglass focuses his time and energy into arguing that slaves are Americans too. When he mentions the well known American hero Patrick Henry, he's making the case that the slaves who fight for their freedom are just as American as the founding fathers since they're just as willing to die for their freedom as they

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