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Frederick Douglass Importance Of Education

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Frederick Douglass was born as Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey around 1818 into slavery (biography.com). He served as a slave during his childhood and early adulthood on farms in Maryland, on the east coast of the United States (biography.com). After being enslaved, he later learned how to read and write and became a leading and inspiring voice in the abolitionist movement (history.com). He then wrote a narrative about his life called Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass which generally shows his path from slavery to freedom. At the beginning of the narrative, Douglass is a slave, physically and mentally. At the end of the story, Douglass found his way to legal freedom and most importantly also gains the ability to free his mind with the help of education. This essay deals with the question in how far education allows Douglass to free himself and helps him …show more content…

Further, this was also the moment when Frederick understood the pathway from slavery to freedom (Douglass 36). He finds out that he was restricted from education in order to keep the structure and understands that he must become literate to gain power. Moreover, he appreciates the realization about the value of education as a grand achievement: “Whilst I was saddened by the thought of losing the aid of my kind mistress, I was gladdened by the invaluable instruction which, by the merest accident, I had gained from my master” (Douglass 36-37). Nevertheless, Frederick did continue learning how to read and write as stated in his biography: “Thus, after a long, tedious effort for years, I finally succeeded in learning how to write” (Douglass 46). This was a life changing achievement for Douglass, since he realised that knowledge brings power, helps to develop your own character and to gain wisdom. Moreover, it helps to participate in

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