Frederick Douglass Short Biography

Douglass was born a slave in 1817, in Maryland. He educated himself and became determined to escape the horror of slavery. He attempted to escape slavery once, but failed. He later made a successful escape in 1838.

many other slaves, Frederick was put to work in the fields. As a young child he

Douglass lived in the slave times. It was illegal to a slave to read and write. Any slave caught reading or writing would be severely punished or even killed. Slave owners felt that if they learn they will soon rebel and start to fight back. Douglass even grew up not even knowing his own age. His master’s wife is what

While on one end slave-owners did their best to deprive slaves of education, on the other side, Douglass constantly stresses the importance of slaves acquiring knowledge and education in any way possible. While in Baltimore, Douglass comes to the realization of just how important education is. His master, Mr. Auld, becomes angry with his wife when he discovers she is trying to teach Douglass how to write. This is a life changing moment for Douglass and from then on, he understood that education was linked with freedom. He would go to extremes to educated himself. Douglass would walk the streets of Baltimore with a book, and a piece of bread. He describes how he would meet up with young white boys and trade his loaf of bread for tips on how to read (Douglass

As a slave, Douglass recognized literacy as an important attribute of a free man. Although his teaching sessions with Sophia Auld had concluded, the little that he learned from her served as the foundation for his future literacy. While living with the Aulds in Baltimore, Douglass encountered whites against slavery for the first time in his life. As a child, he would sometimes bribe poor white boys into teaching him how to read and write in exchange for bread. At age twelve, he obtained a copy of the Columbian Orator, a collection of political essays, poems, and dialogues used in American schools to teach reading, writing, and speaking, which formed the root for his later talents as a public lecturer. Once taken back to his original Maryland plantation, he risked severe punishment and began to assist his fellow slaves to read by operating an

The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave was written by Douglass himself, giving a detailed description of the slaveholders cruelty. Douglass was born in Tuckahoe, Maryland, and he makes known that he does not know his specific birthdate, “... no accurate knowledge of my age, never having seen any authentic record containing it.” (47), but it was approximately around 1818. Once being enslaved, and then escaping in 1838 he became known as an eloquent speaker for abolitionists, being able to deliver passionate speeches about the role of a slaveholder and their relationship to their slaves, especially since he was one of them. Douglass even discovered the true meaning of the songs sung by enslaved people, “ I did not, when a slave, understand the deep meaning of those rude and apparently incoherent songs, I was myself within the circle; so that I neither saw nor heard as those without might see and hear.” (27). The book is not an easy read for those who believe in equal rights, as Douglass put into painful words the description of brutal whippings, signs of no mercy, and people being taken advantage of because if they had shown mercy they believed they would have lost their dignity.

Douglass learned his alphabet and some small words from Mrs. Auld. When Hugh Auld realized she was teaching him to read he ordered her to stop saying that it'll make him unfit to be a slave. Douglass learned how to read and write on his own.

He was internationally recognized as an uncompromising abolitionist, indefatigable worker for justice and equal opportunity, and an unyielding defender of women's rights. He became a trusted advisor to Abraham Lincoln, United States Marshal for the District of Columbia, Recorder of Deeds for Washington, D.C., and Minister-General to the Republic of Haiti”.

He had two wives, Helen Pitts Douglass, and Anna Murray Douglass. Frederick had five children between his wives, Lewis Henry Douglass, Charles Raymond Douglass, his oldest boys.

Frederick was put to work as a field hand and was extremely unhappy. Frederick then organized a Sunday religious service for the slaves which met near town. As quick as they started they were stopped, a mob led by Thomas Auld broke up the meetings and would not soon forget about them.

He fought to integrate the University of Mississippi and though his own efforts were denied he rejoiced when James Meredith succeeded later. He helped key African- American witnesses to the murder of Emmett Till get out of town and escape vigilante justice from white mobs. He had fought for his country during World War II and wanted basic freedoms for his fellow African-Americans back home. He became a leader in the NAACP of Mississippi and helped organize voter registration for African-Americans. He was assassinated by a white supremacist who got away with murder for years before political consciousness and swayed against race

Frederick Douglass was born in Maryland in 1818 as a slave to a maritime captain, Captain Anthony. After decades of enslavement, Frederick Douglass escaped to the North and became one of the prominent members and drivers of the abolitionist movement. In an effort to provide an eye-opening account of the harsh treatment of slaves, Douglass wrote Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. In his autobiography, Frederick Douglass detailed his life beginning from his meager early years through his escape to the North. In writing his autobiography, Douglass utilized a variety of techniques including the use of the three rhetorical strategies: Ethos, Pathos and Logos to create a powerful and influential argument against the institution of

Frederick Douglass was an African American slave, he was owned and worked for the Hughes family. In his time, reading and writing was illegal for slaves, but his mistress started teaching him anyway. He speaks very fondly of

being born a slave, he did not suffer the savagery of slavery until he witnessed the beating of

Fredrick Douglass was Born into slavery in Tuckahoe, Maryland on February, 1818. His mom was also in slavery and his dad was the owner of the slave plantation (Douglass & O’Meally). He tried to escape slavery, but failed in 1836. He attempted to escape a second time two years later in 1938 and succeeded and went to New York City where many escaping slaves often went. (Timeline of Frederick Douglass and Family) He died in 1882 from a heart attack that occurred shortly after participating in a women’s rights meeting and lived to be 77 years old (Timeline of Frederick Douglass and Family) Some of his major accomplishments were that he was nominated to be the Vice President of the united states of America. Another noticeable thing he did was write a famous speech still quoted today and is considered a major part in demolishing slavery called “what to the slave is the fourth of