Just a young african american boy, Fredrick Douglass has gone through the terrible morality of slavery. Douglass was cut off from getting an education as well as freedom. He believed the enslavers to be criminals and nothing less. At one point he wished to be a beast so he could get rid of the toughest of being a slave. During Fredrick Douglas 's time of being slave he was cut off from any education and freedom.
The way all these stories connect is because it talks about slavery. Starting with Fredrick Douglass, with his story of reading to get out of slavery. Then, a book similar to “My bondage and my freedom” this book is written about Fredrick Douglass. “In Texas Grass” is slavery that never ended after all. Starting with “My Bondage and My Freedom,” Fredrick Douglass grew up a slave actually learning to read.
By using strong textual evidence from multiple sources, there is an argument that can be proven. The power of education in “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" is one of the most important themes in the entire work, but it is not a theme with a consistent meaning. Although Frederick Douglass understands that the only path to freedom, both for himself and fellow slaves, is through learning to read, write, and have an educational base to build on, he is at the same time disgusted with education because it causes him to understand the full extent of the horrors of slavery. At one point, Douglass states, “It [education] opened my eyes to the horrible pit, but offered no ladder upon which to get out." With this important quote, having examined the meaning and importance of education in “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.
He states, “Every moment they spent in that school, they were liable to be taken up, and given thirty-nine lashes. They came because they wished to learn… I taught them, because it was the delight of my soul to be doing something that looked like the bettering the condition of my race” (Douglass 88). Therefore, while white readers may not agree with slaves being educated, through his courage to risk himself by teaching not only himself but others how to read and write, readers can depict his humanity in his selflessness and thirst for knowledge, which is a common desire amongst
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.
The mid- to late-nineteenth century was a dark time for slaves in the United States of America. There was a constant struggle for power and social standing in the South, and slaves, were caught in the middle. In order for Frederick Douglass to free himself from the educational and spiritual darkness of slavery, it was essential for him to learn to read and write. Throughout his childhood Douglass was passionate about his need for education.
Frederick Douglass in his narrative “Why I learned to Read and Write” demonstrates how he surpassed many obstacles along the way towards getting an education. These obstacles not only shaped Frederick’s outlook on life but also influenced him in his learning to read and write. Frederick’s main challenge was that of not being an owner of his person but rather a slave and a property to someone else. Frederick Douglass lived in the time when slavery was still taking place and slaveholders viewed slavery and education as incompatible. The slave system didn’t allow mental or physical freedom for slaves; slaveholders were to keep the apt appearance and slaves were to remain ignorant.
In both autobiographies the author is presented with a challenge they must overcome to learn essential skills. The challenge that was presented to the author in “Story of My Life” was that she was deaf and she didn’t know that every word had a different name but also didn’t realize that the same word could identify 2 different objects. The challenge is addressed when Miss Sullivan took her to the well-house and she let her feel the water and the author remembered what water was exactly and that helped her to realize that all objects could have different names. The challenge that was presented to the author in “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave” was that he wanted to read and write but he was not allowed to. The
In the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass An American Slave: Written by Himself, the author suggests that no one can be enslaved if he or she has the ability to read, write, and think. Douglass supports his claim by first beginning the book with saying he does not know dates and can not read or write and secondly, when his master forbade his wife from teaching Douglass to read. Douglass's purpose is to show that slaves are treated unrightfully and to get the prominent leaders in America's society to acknowledge the book and make changes by abolishing slavery. Based on this autobiography, Douglass is writing the leaders of America that have the power to make changes.
Human slavery requires ignorance, just as an individual’s freedom, from oppression, requires knowledge attained by education. To maintain order and control over slaves, slavery demands ignorant slaves; thus, keeping slaves ignorant prevents slaves from recognizing the empowering value of education and education’s ability to liberate slaves from the effects of ignorance. Frederick Douglass’s pursuit of education helped him discover the dark, hidden truths of slavery in his article, “How I Learned to Read and Write.” Thus, the pursuit of education inspires a desire for freedom. The desire to learn generates determination and motivation.
Douglass for example emphasized the importance of education for slaves. Douglass is a first had observer of the strategy of slave owners to keep their slaves ignorant. By keeping slave uneducated they are unable to express the horrible things that happen to them to the world. Hugh Auld forces his wife to stop teaching Douglass to read (auld stopping teaching quote) , so Douglass teaches himself. For him learning to read was a major turning point in his quest for freedom and it enabled him to put out his book, which would inspire many to turn against slavery.
Thus, in The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Frederick Douglass is able to represent slaves as dehumanized property with the sole purpose of working their masters land until the day they die. Douglass also successfully represents slaves as intelligent people who wish to learn and begin to see the world for themselves, not through the eyes of a slave master. Douglass illustrated both sides of the spectrum of slave life, being deprived of knowledge and having, although against the rules, access to material to learn, to provide a distinction between how slaves are handled and how they truly
Although Frederick Douglass was not expected to be literate, he taught himself how because he believed that education should be for everyone, not just a few privileged children. Frederick Douglass was a slave for life in the southern United States before the Civil War. He had no regular teacher because, at that time, most slave owners did not believe that their slaves should be taught to read and write. White slave owners thought that if slaves knew how to read, they would go against their owners and fight against slavery.
With all the knowledge he was gaining, he began to comprehend everything around him. The things he was learning fascinated him, but the “more [he] read, the more [he] was led to abhor and detest [his] enslavers”(Douglass 35); however, that should not be viewed as a negative affect but a positive one. No one should want to be deceived for their entire life. This hatred that he built up motivated him to continue to further educate himself. As a result, he later motivated other slaves to earn an education by having “[availed] themselves to [an] opportunity to learn to read” (Douglass 69) by Douglass teaching them every Sunday.
Frederick Douglass was a slave for many years. He suffered through abuse and cruelty from his slave owners. He was not considered a person, he was considered a piece of property. Douglass recounts his emotions on escaping slavery and arriving in New York in 1838. Frederick Douglass recalls his time in slavery and employs the use of similes and antithesis to convey his state of mind when recounting his escape from slavery.
