After reading the Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, An American Slave, I have received a better understanding of the life of a slave. Douglass has a way of explaining the trials and tribulations of a slave, which makes the reader, look at the situations in a different perspective. Douglass’ narrative was originally oral and he eventually sat down and wrote it as story of events of that time during his life. I believe he wrote it not just to tell his story but for other abolitionists of the time to actually feel what the slaves went through. Douglass begins his narrative in a very original way.
He does not jump into the accounts of his life. But he begins very passive and describes the overseers in a detailed manner. He compares one of his slave masters, Mr. Covey, to a horse breaker. A horse breaker trains horses to be obedient and this is exactly what Mr. Covey does, he trains slaves in a similar way.
The audience Douglass is trying to appeal to are the other abolitionists who he wants to convince that these masters were wrong for their treatment of other human beings. The other abolitionists consist mainly of white, middle-class individuals, usually women. They were the most literate people of the time, therefore they could read this story and understand where Douglass was coming from. He did not go into gruesome details because the women of that time could not handle the gory descriptions of the beatings and discussing things like blood would have offended women. If Douglass’ narrative contained these images it would have carried a negative connotation. Douglass’ main argument in the narrative was to end the institution of slavery as a whole.
The Essay on Frederick Douglass Slave Fredrick Life
In fact, knowledge gives Douglass the courage and resourcefulness to become one of the greatest speakers and writers of all time. Without education he may have forever remained a prisoner of the southern slave masters." Frederick Douglass became a slave owner's worst nightmare when he learned to read. Douglass' literacy helped secure both his mental and physical freedom and guided him to a life ...
His goal was to appeal to the middle-class people of that time and convince them to get on board with the abolitionist movement. Douglass had a great writing style that was descriptive as well as convincing. He uses standard English instead of the vernacular which showed his intelligence. He stays away from expressing personal emotion because someone who is filled with emotion is not rational. If he was too engaged in his emotions he would not be taken seriously, you had to be rational in order to convince the northern abolitionists.
Also staying away from the horrific details of the time help him grasp the attention of the women who in turn would convince their husbands to help by donating money and eventually ending slavery. He used his words effectively in convincing the readers that the slave owners were inhuman and showed how they had no feelings for other human beings. He also attempts to portray them as corrupt Christians. The churches at the time were losing their parishioners and their congregations.
If Douglass successfully proved them as corrupt Christians the ministers would also jump on board for the movement, and their support was a necessity. I feel as though Douglass had a great argument about the treatment of African Americans at the time and their struggle through slavery. He is effective in showing the flaws of the slave owners with out going into to graphic detail and disgusting the reader rather then grasping their attention in a positive manner. Fredrick Douglass had a huge part in the freeing of slaves. He was a very intelligent man that went about things the right way and he knew in his heart that he had to put and end to the unfair treatment of his people. I have an enormous amount of respect for Douglass and other individuals like him because without them we as African Americans do not know where we would be..
