Similarities Between The Lowest Animal And What To The Slave Is The Fourth Of July
Human nature includes characteristics such as thinking, feeling and acting that are shared by all people. While human nature can lead us to be kind and loving, it can also cause us to be competitive, selfish and aggressive. “The Lowest Animal” by Mark Twain and “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July” by Frederick Douglas both display the destructive side of human nature. In Mark Twain’s essay, animals are compared to humans in a number of experiments. He describes humans as cruel, greedy and foolish. Even though humans do have a moral sense, they still don’t always make good decisions. In the Frederick Douglas’s essay, he outlines how African Americans were taken advantage of and treated poorly. However, Douglas outlines reasons for …show more content…
Even though Americans were able to gain their independence from Great Britain, African Americans were still held as slaves due to the greed and cruel human nature of Americans. Douglas condemned America for being untrue to its founding principle of freedom. He also criticized churches and ministers, as they had powers to help eliminate slavery, but stayed silent. “ Slavery the great sin and shame of America!” (Douglas 2). Slaves just wanted to be treated as citizens and celebrate the Fourth of July like the rest of America without judgement of their skin color. “Would you have me argue that man is entitled to liberty?” (Douglas 3). Those who supported slavery were similar to the English hunters in Twain's text who needlessly killed buffalo. Both acted in a selfish and cruel manner. They were also like those in Twain’s text who have plenty of money, but were willing to hurt others to obtain more. “What am I to argue that is wrong to make men brutes, to rot them of their liberty, to rob them without wages, beat them with sticks, to whip them and to starve them into obedience to their masters?” (Douglas 5). Frederick Douglas felt there were forces in motion which would eventually bring the downfall of slavery. Unlike Twain, he had a positive outlook and spirit that human nature would change, allowing every man, woman, and child to have an equal chance at freedom and liberty regardless of skin color. He believed freedom and liberty should be part of everyone’s human nature regardless of skin
How Did Frederick Douglass Despise Slavery
244 Words | 1 PagesWhy did Fredrick Douglas despise slavery? Fredrick Douglas, an African American that has an abundance of history with slavery and torment. Without reading this I wouldn’t have learned how cruel slavery actually was, and how enslavers stole people from their homes, and how he wished to be an animal. The Immorality of slavery is gruesome to many eyes. Though, people still want to rule over other people for various arrogant reasons.
Frederick Douglas's Letter To Rochester Ladies Anti-Slavery
526 Words | 3 PagesFrederick Douglass was an African American abolitionist, who fought to end slavery after he escaped slavery in Maryland. He became a national leader against slavery, whose writing still inspires people today. In a letter written to the Rochester Ladies Anti-Slavery Society, Douglas questions why they are celebrating freedom on Independece Day whilst there are still people enslaved in America. He uses logical reasoning, diction, and syntax to assert his argument.
Differences And Similarities Between Lincoln And Frederick Douglass
1572 Words | 7 PagesAnd Douglass agrees: “[the slave] is the rightful owner of his own body… You have already declared it” (113). Their argument is infallible—if negros are human they have just the same inalienable rights to rule themselves as every other human. The question becomes: are negros human? Douglass answers this absolutely.
How Did Frederick Douglass Use And Abuse Of Irresponsible Power
845 Words | 4 PagesFour thousand and two hundred religions exist in the world each supposedly guiding their followers through commandments, decrees, and customs. The largest of all these religions that impacted the American culture is Christianity. Pioneering with the Salem Witch Trials to the various cult movements that still materializes on the news, some people have a tendency to manipulate religious teachings or abuse their powers for leverage over others. Frederick Douglas writes in depth about fanatic ideologies of slave owner combined with warped interpretations of religious text furthermore, he demonstrates how sudden irresponsible power can corrupt one's ethics. Frederick Douglas wrote about the various people that owned him and a slave owner that
The Lowest Animal Analysis
290 Words | 2 PagesIn “The Lowest Animal”, Mark Twain explains man’s morals and ethics as they compare to the “higher” animals, while in the poem “Ethics” by Linda Pastan, a simple situation is given to show what a person believes is right and wrong; both works reveal the theme hope. Mark Twain takes an interesting approach to explain human nature in his work, “The Lowest Animal”. For example,“[h]e is the only one that inflicts pain for the pleasure of doing it” (Twain 538). People understand that hurting another human being is wrong, whether that be physical or mental abuse. However they sometimes do it anyways for the satisfaction that the action provides.
Frederick Douglass Hypocrisy
155 Words | 1 PagesThe immoral practice of slavery is a fundamental part of American history that most choose to disregard since American patriots and foreigners are blinded by the labels of the land of opportunity, freedom, and diversity. Frederick Douglass exposes the hypocrisy of Americans and the monstrous system of forced labor as they celebrate their liberties through his criticizing speech given on July 4th of 1852. Why should the greedy white man who worships God, yet seems to prioritize profit, have the right to celebrate their independence while owning, abusing and forcing a black man to work against his will? Is that not a sin? Douglass makes it his point to uncover the deceit of the American citizen, and does so in the beginning paragraphs of his
Rhetoric In Fredrick Douglass 'As With Rivers So With Nation'
257 Words | 2 PagesFrederick Douglass was a great writer, but he wasn’t always. He was an escaped slave who used that in his speeches as a topic to gain the attention of his audience. His audience was a seemingly sympathetic one and got to them through rhetorical questions. Douglass wanted to convey the message that there are many changes that need to be made.
Analysis Of The Fourth Of July
762 Words | 4 PagesIn Frederick Douglass’s The Meaning of Fourth of July for the Negro, he exposes the hypocrisy and iniquity that is infused into considerably one of the most prolific American moments in history known as The Fourth of July. Douglass, who was a former slave that eventually reached freedom, was invited to speak about what Fourth of July meant for the black population within America. Although Douglass provided much gratitude to the Founding Fathers for their courage and ability to oppose oppressive systems, he criticizes the American country for its involvement within slavery. Slavery served as the foundation that constructed America, allowing for it fuel the economy and develop into a cultural and political norm within society.
Frederick Douglas's Experiences Of Racism
521 Words | 3 PagesRacism has been a major problem that started slavery, causing the civil war. Slaves were constantly disrespected in the south, they would get beaten if they didn’t live up to the southern standards. Frederick Douglas tries to challenge the reader’s beliefs of what “All men are created equal” means. He tries to challenge this by talking about his personal experiences of being a slave. In his experience, slaves were treated like animals and they were not given fair work.
Turning Point In Frederick Douglass
633 Words | 3 PagesIn Frederick Douglass’s book, he writes accounts of his time in slavery and beyond. Throughout the book, Douglass writes about not only the physical hardships slaves endured, but the mental and emotional hardships as well. In Chapter X, Douglass describes a battle he had with a temporary slave owner named Mr. Covey. After the fight concludes, Douglass writes, “This battle with Mr. Covey was the turning point in my career as a slave. It rekindled the few expiring embers of freedom, and revived within me a sense of my own manhood.
What To The Slave Is The Fourth Of July Essay
636 Words | 3 PagesFreedom is the primary ideal upon which America was founded. It is the tenet most cherished by the original colonists; it is a pillar upon which they built the new government. However, freedom was denied to a large part of America's citizens for a long time. Frederick Douglas was one of the greatest activists for African-American freedom of the 19th century; he used literary works and speeches, instead of violence, to achieve his goals. In his piece "What, to the Slave, is the Fourth of July?"
Frederick Douglass's Arguments Against Slavery
1080 Words | 5 PagesIn “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”, Douglass narrates in detail the oppressions he went through as a slave before winning his freedom. In the narrative, Douglass gives a picture about the humiliation, brutality, and pain that slaves go through. We can evidently see that Douglass does not want to describe only his life, but he uses his personal experiences and life story as a tool to rise against slavery. He uses his personal life story to argue against common myths that were used to justify the act of slavery. Douglass invalidated common justification for slavery like religion, economic argument and color with his life story through his experiences torture, separation, and illiteracy, and he urged for the end of slavery.
Animals In Mark Twain's The Lowest Animal
413 Words | 2 PagesThe Lowest Animal by Mark Twain shatters the illusion that the human species is superior in every way to animals. The essay satirizes that animals are superior to the human species through the use of made up experiments. Twain utilizes these experiments to demonstrate the parallels between the behaviors of animals and man. These experiments showcase how animals are the “higher animals”. Even more, the experiments are attempting to prove how we, as man, have descended from these higher animals only to lose a few of their favorable traits.
Summary Of What To The Slave Is The Fourth Of July
582 Words | 3 PagesWhat to the Slave is the Fourth of July Introduction The 4th of July is an important day in American history it represents freedom and is usually associated with fireworks, parades, alcohol, and concerts. Those activities more or less represent today’s culture. When Fredrick Douglass made his speech he talked about American values such as liberty, citizenship, and freedom. The irony of this speech was that at the time white Americans in the south were still participating in slave trading.
Frederick Douglass Letter To My Old Master Analysis
601 Words | 3 PagesDeshanna Glenn ENG 1300 Letter to my old master, Thomas Auld “Yon bright sun beheld me a slave - a poor degraded chattel - trembling at the sound of your voice, lamenting that I was a man”(Frederick Douglass). Mr. Frederick Douglass spoke intelligently and articulately in this well-written letter to his old master, Thomas Auld. Douglass used metaphors, wit, and irony in this sentence to his master, He sounded, “removed” and placid as he spoke very straightforward, bold, yet respectful way about the degradation of being treated as personal property instead of a human being. There is a little melodrama in there
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