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What Is The Life Of Frederick Douglass Rhetorical Devices

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Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is an interesting autobiography of the life of Frederick Douglass, an African American who spent time in slavery, then eventually escaped. Douglass was born into slavery, and accepted it for a good while of the time that he was in slavery. Once he realized that escaping was the only option to settle for, he finally tried to escape, and succeeded. In order to get the point across that slavery is bad and that slaves are people as well as Caucasian Americans, Douglass uses several rhetorical devices including repetition, anecdotes, and imagery, as well as some others. ` By using repetition in this narrative, Douglass gets his point across by sticking specific ideas into the reader’s head. For example, he writes, “Work, work, work, was scarcely more the order…” (Douglass, X, 37), and the word “work” is repeated. By repeating this word, he sticks the idea that all the slaves did was work, and that it is what their lives revolved around. So, Douglass uses repetition to get ideas stuck in the heads of the readers. …show more content…

For example, Douglass gives an anecdote that “...she fell into the fire, and burned herself horribly.” (Douglass, IX, 33), recalling a story when one of the weaker slaves was injured badly, proving what horrible conditions the slaves lived in, regardless of their masters. This specific anecdote also works with pathos to make the reader feel bad for the slaves, helping Douglass’ point that slavery is

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This article discusses how Frederick Douglass uses irony, rhetorical devices, and facts to argue that slavery is not sanctioned by the Constitution. - Frederick Douglass was an American slave born in Maryland in 1817. He escaped slavery at the age of twenty and became an impressive orator. His work is a prime example of what can be accomplished when using rhetorical devices effectively. In his narrative, Douglass cites examples from the Constitution that support his argument against slavery.

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The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave by Frederick Douglass (University of Virginia Library. Web. 15 Dec. 2015) puts readers in a position that allows them to understand the great struggles and misfortunes that came with being an American slave and how Frederick Douglass’ managed to escape from the grasp of slavery and find his own liberating freedom. A daring feat that can be defined by a series of epiphanies, a man’s great determination, and the constant regrowth of a broken man’s soul. From the excerpt, previously shown above, Douglass depicts a vivid image of just how severe the work conditions of slaves were, how difficult it was to please a slave master, and how horribly a man can be ripped of his will.

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He explains how he is “in the midst of thousands,” and yet a “stranger,” cannot tell the other African Americans in New York of his “sad conditions,” and is starving, emphasizing that he has nothing solely because he is a “fugitive slave.” The repetition creates a feeling of something being unattainable: he can see the possibility of friends and food, and yet, they are just out of reach. For Douglass to see what he wants but be unable to achieve it indefinitely must make him feel alone; this readers can understand and have likely experienced, thus effectively communicating his loneliness. This is further illustrated through Douglass saying how he is “wanting” shelter and bread, but is unable to have it. It is easy for readers to tell that the reason he cannot have bread or a house is based on the belief that he is a “fugitive slave,” thus closing himself off to others who could provide a home, and preventing him from getting a job which could give him money.

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