Human Vs. Being Free In The Narrative Frederick Douglas

In the Narrative Frederick Douglas -as well as the historic period it took place in- being human meant being free. The words are practically interchangeable in the novel. However the interpretation of what this tangible freedom meant differed, based on the point of view of the people groups in this narrative. For the white slave owners or whites in the South, being human and being free meant having the right to accumulate power. Being able to have control as well as superiority was what they worked their way up to. In their eyes, slaves were a commodity earned by their hard work. Owning slaves meant owning money, and the pattern of peer pressure which rings old as history itself did not escape this crowd. With their neighbors watching, the

The first time his eyes were open to the door connecting his world to the world of freedom, was when his eyes were open to literacy. Learning to read opened more opportunities for Frederick than he would have guessed because he was one step closer to society’s standard of being human. The wrecking ball destroying the door allowing Frederick to enter society’s ‘human world’ was when he learned the power that resisting held. As Frederick put it, “The battle with Mr. Covey was the turning point in (his) career as a slave.” Once Frederick learned to resist punishment he was never punished as a slave again. Shortly thereafter, escaping slavery was a possibility. Fortunately for the world, it started to become clear that those un-free were human as well. But it took too long. What’s most saddening is that during this time millions of slaves were mistreated and killed, and seen as neither free nor human solely because of the pigment of their