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Rhetorical Analysis Of Learning To Read And Write Frederick Douglass

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Learning to Read and Write Fredrick Douglas was a well known figure in the abolishment movement his narrative “Learning to Read and Write” Fredrick Douglas shares his own personal journey of how he learns to read and write. His chronological organization also helps the reader get a better grasp of the stages in his life; his innocence, his epiphany, his loathing and his finally his determination. In the expert Douglas uses syntax and diction, intelligent metaphors and he use of irony to portray his thoughts that went through his mind as a slave. In the beginning of his narrative Douglas use of syntax and diction. He speaks about his first teacher, the mistress, and how she was so eager to educate him. Initially, Douglass reveres her as a kind and generous woman because she was his …show more content…

The metaphors Douglas uses for the most powerful statements, and help them to mark the main ideas of the essay. When Douglas writes about the poor children who taught him in exchange for bread, he makes a connection that is easily relate in to the reader's mind: "This bread I used to bestow upon the hungry little urchins, who, in return, would give me that more valuable bread of knowledge" (Douglass 70). He also reflects on his owner's wife (referring to her as "mistress") saying "mistress, in teaching the alphabet, had given me the inch, and no precaution could prevent me from taking the ell" (Douglass 69). This implies that "mistress" is the origin of Douglass's success in his field, and that without her, he wouldn't have accomplished all that he has. He also recollects his feelings towards his enslavers, equating them with "a band of successful robbers, who had left their homes, and gone to Africa, and stolen us from our homes..." (Douglass 71). If for whatever reason the reader hadn't made that connection, Douglass extinguishes any confusion by offering this

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In his writing, Douglass states, “I was now about twelve years old, and the thought of being a slave for life began to bear heavily upon my heart. Just about this time, I got hold of a books entitled “The Columbian Orator.” Every opportunity I got, I used to read this book. Among much of other interesting matter, I found in it a dialogue between a master and his slave” (Douglass 2). Douglass displays the use of narration in this piece of writing through himself explaining an identified experience he endured.

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In this moment, by eavesdropping and allowing the words of his white master to fester in his soul, Douglass came to know how the white man had power over the black man. By knowing the information of what caused his suffering, Douglass easily knew how to reverse the suffering he was facing into the enlightenment that freedom from slavery poses. This is a profound, and thus efficacious, moment in the text of the novel considering the fact that it was the turning point from hopelessness to optimistic aspiration in Douglass’

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In the first three paragraphs, Douglass’ writes about some of the difficulties he faced as a slave, although his leisurely tone conveys little emotion. In these paragraphs, Douglass writes long, winding sentences, containing many details and a great deal of imagery. He mentions slave-breaker Mr. Covey, who was extremely

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Soon, he can copy from the dictionary. When the Aulds leave Douglass alone in the house, he writes in Thomas Auld’s old discarded copybooks. In this painstaking manner, Douglass eventually learns to

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Douglass was so determined to become literate that he learned in so many unorthodox ways that it made him a better thinker, reader, and writer. As a child Douglass got his hands on The Columbian Orator, which instilled an influx of ideas in his mind. Although with the spark the Columbian Orator arisen, Douglass wasn’t able to do much with it because he was unable to create a coherent answer or response to the questions and ideas he had. With the arrival of these thoughts also brought along heartache. He was a prisoner to his own mind, when he learned to read he got a rude awakening by being aware of his situation as a slave.

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In his article, Douglass first explains where he lived and gave acknowledgement to the women who helped him succeed in reading and writing. He says “I had no regular teacher. My mistress, who had kindly commenced to instruct me, had in compliance with advice and direction of her husband, not only ceased to instruct,

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Because of the statuses of each person who attends Douglass’ school, they have a common ground to discuss with each other. Although Douglass is not technically a slave like most of the others learning from him, he still is in the lowest social tier and African American. Because of their corresponding similarities, the slaves and Douglass bond over their hardships while understanding what the others are going through. It is easy to sympathize with each other because they are in the same situation. During the time period this was written, society purposely made African American slaves feel like they didn’t belong and like they were outcasts.

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Douglass was only able to comprehend the magnitude of his situation by learning how to read. “It had given me a view of my wretched condition,”(61) Douglass stated when speaking about learning to read. To give someone a view refers to allowing

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According to Mistress Hugh, “education and slavery were incompatible with each other” (Douglass, 33). Although Mistress Hugh had stopped teaching Douglass how to read, the seed of knowledge had already been planted. In the years that followed, his hunger for knowledge did not dissipate. Douglass devised various methods to learn to read and write in very clever ways.

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Initially, Douglass’s mistress was a compassionate and kind person towards him. She would help him read and write and would help those who were in need of food, clothes, and comfort.

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Human slavery requires ignorance, just as an individual’s freedom, from oppression, requires knowledge attained by education. To maintain order and control over slaves, slavery demands ignorant slaves; thus, keeping slaves ignorant prevents slaves from recognizing the empowering value of education and education’s ability to liberate slaves from the effects of ignorance. Frederick Douglass’s pursuit of education helped him discover the dark, hidden truths of slavery in his article, “How I Learned to Read and Write.” Thus, the pursuit of education inspires a desire for freedom. The desire to learn generates determination and motivation.

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An education often opens new doors for people, but how does a lack of an education affect other people? What causes such a stark difference between people with knowledge and people no knowledge at all? In the Narrative of Frederick Douglass an American Slave we can see that Douglass is more intelligent than the other slaves on the plantation he is living on due to his hidden ability to read. With his level of education, he is able to see the brutal mistreatment of slaves and is unable to look at things the same way when he was an uneducated slave. The slaves on the plantation do not know how to read and therefore do not view being a slave the way Douglass views it.

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In his essay "Learning to Read and Write," Frederick Douglass points out how he learned to read and write on his own. Douglass's interest of reading started at a young age when he first read a newspaper. This made Douglass decide one day to come up with a plan on how he can improve his reading. One way Douglass did this was by asking other kids to teach him when they could. In addition, Douglass would always carry around a book to read when he had time on his hands.

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