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Research Paper On Frederick Douglass

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n this autobiography, Frederick Douglass narrated his life as a slave. Douglass wrote this autobiography so that people could learn about the horrific things he witnessed and experienced as a slave. He talked about the conditions he lived in, and the way his masters treated him. Throughout the book, Douglass describes the process of becoming free; both physically and mentally. III. Life as a slave was tough. Slaves had very little knowledge of everything. Douglass for example, did not know his birthday nor age (1). He also did not know who his dad was, all Douglass knew was that his father was white. Rumors went around saying that his father was also his master, but those rumors were never one-hundred percent confirmed (2). Slaves were not …show more content…

Slaves got very little, horrible tasting food, which led them to starvation. The most fortunate slaves got three types of clothing items per year: two shirts, a pair of pants, and a pair of shoes (10). The not so fortunate ones, children for example, only got shirts. No shoes, no pants, nothing else!!! Douglass also says that they did not have beds. The closest thing they had to a bed was a blanket (11). During the coldest nights, Douglass would “crawl into this bag” and sleep there (29). In the mornings, slaves were expected to rise at the sound of a horn. If for some reason a slave did not get up quickly, the overseer would be “ready to whip anyone” …show more content…

He once saw his master whip a woman while her children where begging him to stop (11). If slaves disobeyed their masters rules, they would be punished. This happened to his aunt Hester, she went out one evening when her master requested her presence. When she was found, she was stripped of her clothes and tied to a hook. The master started to whip her until “red blood came dripping to the floor” (6). This happened when Douglass was quite young. The worst part was that the masters took “great pleasure in whipping a slave” (4). Another horrible event that Douglass witnessed was seeing his brother get stomped on by Master Andrew “till the blood gushed from his nose and ears” (49). He also experienced a beating himself when he did not take off his clothes when his master ordered him to. His master “lashed” him “till he had worn out his switches, cutting” him “so savagely as to leave marks visible for a long time after” (62). Douglass used situations he experienced to prove that the life of a slave was

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