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The Negative Effects Of Slavery On Slaveholders

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“Where slavery is, there liberty cannot be; and where liberty is, there slavery cannot be”(Abraham Lincoln). The publication of the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass(1845) by Frederick Douglass is a looking glass into the life a slave. Still to this day, it is used as a source against the institution of slavery. The purpose of the narrative is to persuade readers that slavery needs to be ended and to help abolitionists achieve this goal. Slavery is demeaning and not only has a negative effect on slaves, it has a negative effect on slaveholders as well. Through his effective use of use of anecdotes, vivid imagery, and appeals to pathos Frederick Douglass argues that the institution of slavery is a dehumanizing mean that strips the …show more content…

A great anecdote which also had vivid imagery depicted the tragedy of Douglass’s grandmother. “My grandmother, who was now very old, having outlived my old master and all his children, having seen the beginning and end of all of them, and her present owners finding she was of but little value, her frame already racked with the pains of old age, and complete helplessness fast stealing over her once active limbs, they took her to the woods, built her a little hut, put up a little mud-chimney, and then made her welcome to the privilege of supporting herself there in perfect loneliness; thus virtually turning her out to die”(Narrative). Douglass is stating, when his grandmother was of little of use her master forced her to live isolated in the woods until she died. This anecdote and display of imagery was used to appeal to the reader’s emotions. By doing this, Douglass is gaining sympathy from the readers by saying if slavery wasn’t a thing, my grandmother would not have been forced to die along. Pathos is used throughout the entire book to give the reader a sense of how it feels to be …show more content…

When Douglass moves to Baltimore he is thrilled to see that his Mistress Sophia Auld is a kind woman. However, things take an unfortunate change of events when Ms. Auld lets the power of owning another person corrupt her. “But, alas! this kind heart had but a short time to remain such.The fatal poison of irresponsible power was already in her hands, and soon commenced its infernal work. That cheerful eye, under the influence of slavery, soon became red with rage; that voice, made all of sweet accord, changed to one of harsh and horrid discord; and that angelic face gave place to that of a demon”(Narrative). Once slavery corrupted her, her once angelic traits were replaced with those that could only be seen as pure evil. Thus, reinforcing the idea that slavery tainted slaveholders who were once seen as good people. Douglass demonstrated the significance of the phrase: “good people do bad things” during the times of

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