Compare And Contrast What To The Slave Is The Fourth Of July

The United States was founded on the belief that every man has “certain inalienable Rights.” Not until ninety years later, however, when slavery was abolished did the United States actually offer these “Rights” to all of its citizens. The 19th century was turbulent time of stress and change for America. One of the most controversial dilemmas was the issue of slavery. Slavery was conceived by many to be morally wrong, and it undermined America’s most valued beliefs. Despite this inconsistency, slavery was still widely supported and permitted out of economic necessity in the South.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton was not just a mother, daughter, feminist, and writer; but she is the woman who changed the lives of women everywhere by fighting for equality. Stanton lived a normal childhood, but one that motivated her to never give up hope in reaching her goal. A quick background of her life will help better understand why she became such a powerful woman’s rights activist. Also, what she accomplished that changed history and how it still affects us today in 2011. I will also express my individual satisfaction with what this incredible woman has done for women everywhere. On November 12, 1815 Elizabeth Cady Stanton was born to the Cady family in Johnstown, New York (Gordon, 2009). She was born into a high-class, conservative,

Douglass spends so much time talking about these points because he was a former slave and the fact that he was invited to make a speech about freedom and liberty for the 4th of July was not proper. Therefore, Douglass uses irony to emphasize these points; for example, “Would you have argue that man is entitled to liberty? That he is the rightful owner of his own body? You have already declared it” (Douglass 380)

Writers use pathos, ethos, and logos in their writing to appeal to their audience. Pathos is an appeal to emotions, ethos is an appeal to trust, and logos is an appeal to reasoning or logic. Frederick Douglass's, " What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" is about his views and the views of many slaves towards the Fourth of July. He uses ethos, pathos, and logos effectively to convey his central message.

Throughout history, Americans have sought to spread the spirit of equality, which is believed to be the realization of true freedom. Before establishing this freedom, every American had only one question stuck in their head: What is freedom? Our country received it in the year of 1776 from the British through a series of difficulties and wars. African Americans defined it as an escape from slavery, while immigrants defined it as their acceptance into a new society. More yet, women of the women’s suffrage defined their freedom as their recognition into society and for their rights to be equal to that of every other man. These different perceptions of cultures/groups in America tied together to form an American view of freedom. Freedom is

America by far is the most diverse country on the face of the earth. America today is known for freedom, equality, democracy, and a defender against tyranny. The foundation of American values lay in a belief of independence, nationalism, capitalism, and religion. However, many conflicts have arisen over these values in the past. Capitalism and other characteristics have made America great, but they have brought about their own set of inequalities. Those inequalities have deep roots in race, culture, gender, and wealth. In the 1800s two of the biggest conflict lies with the issue of slavery and women’s rights.

The Fourth of July is the nation’s birthday, but it is also a time for everyone to get together and mingle for hours on hours. Countless number of friends and family get together on the beach for barbeques, parties, watch the sun set sink away and have an amazing night full fireworks. Having the chance to have spent my 2015 Fourth of July along Ft. Lauderdale beach was the best time of my life. It brought such joy and excitement to be able to spend the holiday with family and friends.

Which is why the North wanted the South to unite with them for this revolution. However, in document five a man named George Fitzhugh a Southerner said in a book called Cannibals All! Or Slaves Without Masters “The Negro slaves of the South are the happiest and, in some sense, the freest people in the world.” The title alone is criticizing the factory conditions of the North and the text says that slaves are happy working under their conditions. Except there is a difference between feeling free and being free and no one understands that better than a man named Frederick Douglass who was a runaway slave said in document four “...To the American slave, is your 4th of July?...To, him your celebration is a sham.” He is saying that it is an injustice when a man in this country says everyone is free when in fact the slaves are not. Even the government got involved with slavery; in document eight it pictures a fight on the senate floor between Senator Sumner and Brooks who beat Sumner with his cane. There was also the Dred Scott case in document nine, where the supreme court viewed a black man as property rather than a person “...they had no rights which the white man was bound to respect...a negro of the african race was regarded by them as an

During 1850, American society was catching fire in terms of influential women and men whom would set out to change history. Elizabeth Cady Stanton being denied entrance at a London Convention due to her gender inspired the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848, which discussed women 's rights as well as introduce Sojourner Truth as a speaker. Sojourner accounted her life as a slave laborer, who could do any job better that a man, thus giving reason to why women should be treated equally to men rather than a subordinate. Fredrick Douglass, a former slave and eminent human rights leader in the abolition movement, was the first black citizen to hold a high U.S. government rank. Then there is Celia, a slave, whose story rattled America to its core through the raising of fundamental questions regarding a slave’s right to fight back against traumatizing years of abuse.

Douglass has a very long answer to this question. On page 13-14 it says, “What to the American slave, is your Fourth of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim.” He goes on to say how it is a sham. Whites are all up and love it and the blacks just get reminded how they are not independent no matter how much they want to be.

In many ways, America “... blinds [itself] to the future” (Source C). On the Fourth of July, many Americans ignore the fact that slavery was a part of U.S. history or write it off as not being as bad as it really was; but these heinous acts will always remain an integral part of history. Frederick Douglas viewed America as a country of hypocrites, claiming the holiday “is yours, not mine” (Source C). This shows how America claims a day of freedom but still hadn’t abolished slavery at the time of the speech. Since Frederick Douglass's speech in 1852, slavery has since been

Nelson Mandela said, “When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw.” One such man, Frederick Douglas, wrote “From What to the Slave is the Fourth of July? An Address Delivered in Rochester, New York, on 5 July 1852.” He argues that even though blacks and whites went to fight in the war to be free, that promise was not kept to the blacks. Douglass persuades a northern, white audience, to oppose slavery and favor abolition. Douglass wants to remind abolitionist and White Americans that July 4 was not a celebration for slaves and former slaves. Independence Day only made slaves remember that they were made promises for freedom that were not kept.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton forever changed the social and political landscape of the United States of America by succeeding in her work to guarantee rights for women and slaves. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a leader in the 19th century for women’s activist and women’s suffrage leader. As an active American abolitionist, she gave many lectures and wrote books. Among those fighting for women’s rights, she was a primary leader. Though she was interested in women’s rights from many perspectives, Elizabeth realized that success hinged on women’s right to vote. Elizabeth often worked with Susan B. Anthony as a theorist and writer. Elizabeth was a very important person to the women’s rights movement, because she fought for equal rights of women to be considered equal to a man. Stanton’s unwavering dedication to women’s suffrage resulted in the 19th amendment to the Constitution, which granted that right. These facts will present to you the difficulties she encountered and her contributions.

Among America’s supposed values of democracy, liberty, and equality lies a group of people content with the institution of slavery. Slavery itself is an evil which was unjustly perpetrated throughout the beginning stages of society, at least until it was willfully fought against by abolitionist such as Frederick Douglass. Through Douglass’s speech “What to a Slave is the Fourth of July” he pursues Plato’s ideal form of the Good by encouraging subversion of America’s oppressive system, one that condemns African Americans to slavery.

The United States of America is known for its claims of democracy, equality, and freedom for all of it’s citizens. These claims are the foundation of America’s independence and essentially its entire history. But “claims” are simply all they were in history. While many achieved equal democracy and freedom, the African-American population of the US was exempt from these “inalienable rights” and heavily oppressed by society. The cruelty of slavery and oppression as a whole reached its peak in the 19th century bringing upon the abolitionist movement, which eventually aided in the historic removal of slavery and the continued fight for equal right of citizenship for African-Americans. Of the many abolitionists who fought for