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Slavery In The Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass

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Slavery Essay When one considers the Declaration of Independence, equality, and rights are two principles that are believed to be granted to all. Equality can be defined as everyone having the same thing while rights are granted to you that can’t be taken away. However, Frederick Douglass would not agree with this aligns with slavery. In his narrative, he tells the story of how slaves were treated. Also how slavery is not right and doesn’t follow the Declaration of Independence. According to Douglass, slavery lacks the rights and equality stated in the Declaration of Independence. In his narrative, Frederick Douglass shows that slavery does not align with the principles of equality and rights as stated in the Declaration of Independence. In the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Douglass shares that slaves are not equal. In Chapter 2, Douglass claims that slaves didn’t have the proper living condition. Douglass states, “ there were no beds given the slaves…” (30). This shows that the slaves had to sleep on the floor while slaveholders had beds. In addition, the narrative continues with slaves not …show more content…

In Chapter 10, Douglass fails to make an escape from slavery. Douglass explains “ They at once seized me, and, without giving me any satisfaction, tied me - lashing my hands closely together” (96). This confirms that slaves don’t have the right to be free. Furthermore, the narrative continues with Douglass learning how to read and write. Douglass suggests “He would at once become unmanageable, and no value to his master” (51). This proves that slaves don’t know how to read and write. Finally, in Chapter 7, Douglass reads the Columbian Orator and finds the human rights part also the speeches. Douglass implies “ …stolen us from our homes, and in a strange land reduced us to slavery” (57). This shows that slaves are taken from their homes to be

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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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Douglass details his experiences and life after running away “Since I left you, I have had a rich experience. I have occupied stations which I never dreamed of when a slave. […] I soon learned, however, to count money, as well as to make it, and got on swimmingly” (103). During this time period, it was a common presupposition that African Americans were incapable of making a living on their own. However, Douglass uses his own experiences to prove otherwise, which was important in proving his main argument that he was not a slave but rather his master’s fellow man.

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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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Former slave Frederick slave helped spark the ideas of equality in his narrative, “The Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass”. This single book has helped slaves all over America.

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Frederick Douglass’s 1845 excerpt, “Learning to Read and Write” (paragraphs 7+8), shifts from slavery and abolitionism to learning how to write as a slave, utilizes homogenous analogies, parallel structure, and anaphoras, in order to show that although “learning how to write” is a “treacherous” and a “long, tedious effort” for slaves, hard work will eventually lead to success. Homogenous analogies, such as the fruit of abolition and the light breaking upon Douglass, accentuate how the word “abolition” can literally bring a person closer to freedom. For instance, Douglass mentions how a slave who “ran away” or “set fire to a barn” is associated with abolition. It took Douglass sometime to acquire the definition of “abolition” because he had

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The Interpretation of Freedom in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself, and Our Nig: Sketches from the Life of a Free Black This essay will argue that the two African-American protagonists from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, written by Frederick Douglass, and Our Nig: Sketches from the Life of a Free Black, written by Harriet E. Wilson, have suffered lives without freedom for long, but eventually they find their way to achieve some freedom, by regaining control of their bodies and souls. Such freedom is limited, for they cannot escape or destroy the racist society that confines people’s free will, but it still can be regarded as a great success for them and other

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(Douglass, Chapter 3, Part 2). While his friends’ intentions were pure, they were content with him simply repeating his story and never thought to ask a former enslaved person their opinion on the movement and philosophy. Unsurprisingly, as time passed, Douglass became unsatisfied with a simple recollection of the wrongs in his life. Douglass states, “I could not always curb my moral indignation for … perpetrator of slaveholding villainy … for a circumstantial statement of the facts” (Douglass, Chapter 3, Part 2). Douglass was aware that his story was new to audiences, but he had formed new ideas inspired by his peers' philosophies, gained more experience as an orator, and felt he should do more to denounce enslavement.

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One of the strategies Douglass uses to convince his audience slavery should be abolished is by “calling out American hypocrisy in his Fourth of July oration” (Mercieca 1). He shames them with no remorse. He speaks on the opposite treatments that enable whites to live in a state of freedom and liberty, while the blacks are living in a state of bondage. As the audience listens, he reminds them, there are men, women and children still held hostages to the chains of

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He tells us about his struggles and how he reached freedom. According to Douglass, the slaves were treated poorly while the whites had it all. This proves that they were not equal. The slaves also had no choice but to do whatever here masters wished. This shows they had no rights.

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At last, Douglass brings the point of freedom and justice the one person has every right to him than any other, and no man has the authority to rule over

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Frederick wastes no time in his narrative to explain how slavery is more of a mental battle than a physical battle. He tells the reader “I was born in Tuckahoe.. I have no accurate knowledge of my age.” and “a want of information concerning my own was a source of unhappiness” illustrating that he was deprived of his self-worth and self-identity at an early age. In chapter 6, Douglass overhears his master say “learning would spoil the best nigger in the world” although harsh, this is my favorite part of the text because this triggers Douglass to begin his transition into a free man.

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Truth about Slavery What does it mean to be equal? Being equal means having the same rights and getting treated fairly. Unfortunately, in Fredrick Douglass' situation, he was not treated equally at all because slaveholders were treated like humans while slaves were treated like animals. Slaveholders were educated but slaves were not because they could not go to school,write,or even read. Douglass changes the reader's beliefs that all men are created equal by explaining how slaves were dehumanized and did not have a right to an education.

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Douglass encountered multiple harsh realities of being enslaved. For example, the ex-slave was practically starved to death by his masters on multiple occasions. In fact, “[He was] allowed less than a half of a bushel of corn-meal per week, and very little else... It was not enough for [him] to subsist upon... A great many times [he had] been nearly perishing with hunger” (pg 31).

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Because of this, he successfully creates a contrast between what the slave owners think of and treat the slaves and how they are. Douglass says that slave’s minds were “starved by their cruel masters”(Douglass, 48) and that “they had been shut up in mental darkness” (Douglass, 48) and through education, something that they were deprived of, Frederick Douglass is able to open their minds and allow them to flourish into the complex people that they are. By showing a willingness to learn to read and write, the slaves prove that they were much more than what was forced upon them by their masters.

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“With them, justice, liberty and humanity were “final”; not slavery and oppression.” This relates to the hardships and the fact that the people don’t recognize how terrible it is. And that these meanings of these “free” words mean something else to him and other slaves. He shows that the changes are hard but once they are made everything will be peaceful. Rhetorical features and strategies are Douglass’ forte’ in engaging with the audience.

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