Frederick Douglass: The Mishandling Of Orphaned Children

Towards the end of chapter ten in The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Douglas describes how slave owners would make slaves’ holidays miserable. Slave owners did this to manipulate the slaves into believing that they are better off in slavery. They would entice slaves to get drunk by placing bets on who could drink the most. When a slave had had enough to drink, he would then ask for something else, but unknowingly receive more alcohol. As a result, slaves would prefer to work in the fields instead of having holidays. This passage illustrates how African Americans remained content in their shackles of slavery for 245 years in America.

Douglass got his passion to promote freedom for all slaves after he escaped from slavery and ultimately had an end goal to “abolish slavery in all its forms and aspects, and promote the moral and intellectual improvement of the coloured people and hasten the day of freedom to the three million of enslaved fellow countrymen”. He also wrote several autobiographies describing his experiences as a slave. One of the autobiographies in particular, ‘Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave’ published in 1845 was a best-selling and was extremely influential for promoting the cause of abolition. The narrative shows a compelling argument to basic human rights thus making it extremely influential as the narrative clearly possesses features and linguistic skills, which for most white people, negated their common perception of black people being illiterate in the 19th century.

Throughout history, there have been many black-rights activists that use their power of speaking to fight injustice and promote equality. One of those activists, who fought for equality with the power of his words, was Frederick Douglass. Frederick Douglass was an African American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. He had a vision of the roles of African Americans during and after the war to ensure they receive citizenship and freedom. Frederick Douglass faced many tribulations throughout his life and that only made his speeches for equality and justice that much more powerful because he was a victim of injustice. Douglass believed that if African Americans want to have citizenship and be seen as equals, they must prove that they deserve it. In order to prove that African Americans deserve citizenship, Douglass encouraged them to enlist and join the fight for equality. Although there were obstacles in seeing his vision implemented Douglass stood his ground and fought until his vision becomes reality.

Frederick Douglass had integrationist views. These included the right of women to vote and to be interested in and involved in politics just as much as men (Huggins & Handlin, 1997). He believed at the time that women were being cheated out of their rights, and also that the country and political system was being cheated because women were not having their voices heard. The more he studied the Constitution, the more he decided that it was against slavery. Before, he had thought the document supported having slaves. From there, Douglass attacked the hypocrisy that he believed was so strong in the US, along with the hypocrisy that he also believed was strongly seen in the Christian church (Huggins & Handlin, 1997). He advocated for education, and for making men and women, black and white more equal than they were. During that time in his life, he called for the court to rule to let black children into school so they could get an education. Slave rebellions were suggested, but Douglass would not support them. He did not feel as though violence was the answer to the problems black people faced (Huggins & Handlin, 1997).

Douglass’s goal was to promote freedom for slaves in the Unites States, Douglass spent his life protecting African-American rights as well as other minorities and women. In his speech “ What to the slave is the Fourth of July,” he asserted,” Trust no future, however pleasant, let the dead past bury its dead; Act, act in the living present, heart within, and God overhead.” America has accomplished freedom for African-American people because of the influence that

“You are a product of your environment.”- W. Clement. The way you were raised, the people who raised you and the community that you are raised in all play a role in who you are as an individual. Constantly throughout time the way an individual defines themselves is based on their roots, the actions or reactions that have built a foundation of who they’re today. Through the lens of a slave later turned into one of the largest faces of abolitionist acts, Frederick Douglass creates “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” in which he accounts the community he was raised in and the constant fear instilled within his community as well as his later assimilation into new communities and possibly being responsible for creation of a

What is justice? Is it a fitting punishment for a crime? Or a court or officer of the law? Is it the law itself? It has many definitions and interpretations, depending on various people. Some interpret it very simply, saying that it is fairness in every situation. Others give the word more complication, saying that it is doing what is morally right and fair. Oxford Dictionary defines it as many things, including, “Just behaviour or treatment...The quality of being fair and reasonable.” Black’s Law Dictionary defines justice as, “The constant and perpetual disposition to render every man his due.” All are various meanings and interpretations of one, single, word, that has been explored in many books and novels, including one by Harper Lee. In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the characters of Atticus and Mr. Raymond to show the meaning of true justice and how it transcends prejudicial divisions.

The narrative begins with Douglass being oblivious to the identity of his father. This theme of Frederick Douglass being young and naïve is continued throughout the beginning. The idea of slaves being young and naïve is seen in almost all slave narratives. One of the ways slave owners kept slaves captive is through keeping the slaves ignorant. It is nearly impossible for a slave to escape slavery if they cannot read and write. Slave owners knew how impossible this was so they kept them ignorant, they kept them from learning. Since ignorance is what seems to hold slaves captive, one could easily conclude that knowledge is the key to freedom. Douglass figured this out at a young age. He starts learning from Mrs. Auld but eventually ends up

“If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” This famous quote is from a speech given by one of America’s most influential abolitionist speakers, Frederick Douglass. Born into slavery, this great American leader led a life many of us would find impossible to bear. After gaining his freedom from slavery, Douglass shared his stories through impressive speeches and vivid autobiographies, which helped America move forward as a country liberated from racial inequality. Although Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave allows readers to understand what life was like for slaves in antebellum America, the most important and relevant lesson to take away from this narrative today is the importance of perseverance. Douglass’s courage to resist and learn paired with his determination to keep his faith and ultimately find himself, is something to which people from every culture and time period can relate.

The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass and The Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl are both nineteenth-century narratives about Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs’s experiences born into slavery and as escaped slaves. The concept of gender makes each narrative have distinct perspectives’ of their version of what they endure during slavery and how it shapes their freedom. Even though both narratives have many similarities of educating the complexity of being a vulnerable slave, Harriet Jacobs’ narrative provides more reason that slavery is far worse for women than it is for men.

When a man grows up as an untaught slave in the southern eighteenth-century, he has no other ambitions than to be free. But for Frederick Douglass, freedom was merely step one. Douglass began his life on a plantation owed from the moment he arrived. He was not destined to stay put there. Born in (what he can come close to) 1818, he began life out as a man in chains but ended up a respected wordsmith, but still apologetic for his short comings. Douglass learned how to read, write, and give speeches; he influenced a nation for changes among writers today; and he had different approaches to the era he lived in, but knew he wanted change to exist among all. These things were needed to occur in order for the slavery and African-American society to be recognized as equals among all. His wit was not small nor was his leadership not seen as defiance. Each step of his journey, brought him to a different place where he faced a challenge that could not have been met any other way, but with strength and education where he was successful in obtaining. Douglass was not only a speaker, but was an author of his time. Many colleagues wrote of him and his life even after he passed away. In Douglass’ works he spoke of his ignorance and blunders, but continued to sow his good seed. In the book “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas an

Douglass offers a historical parallel to support his abolitionist ideology to demonstrate how the ignorance of the past does not have to pervade the present, thus encouraging Plato’s ideal Good within American society. Especially since the fourth of July celebrates America’s liberation from England’s tyrannical rule, a once radical and seemingly unattainable goal, African American’s search for liberty is emphasized. The colonists had good intentions and, “They loved their country better than their own private interests…though this is not the highest form of human excellence (Douglass 5), Douglass’s claim that their intentions were still misplaced shows how he wished for a better, more equal society. This society, would be characterized by a majority of abolitionists, essentially citizens who seek out justice and equality for all, rather than just the white majority currently in power. Douglass’s claims coincide with Plato’s view that “as for persuading and coercing fellow citizens to the point of self-improvement…this alone is the task of a truly good citizen.” (Plato 95) This quote serves as justification for a society comprised of Good citizens that strive to attain compromise and fairness. His want for an inclusive America, calls citizens to action, to truly uphold their constitution which claims it establishes equality. Douglass embodies the Good by attempting to inform his fellow citizens of what justice for all looks like. It’s important to lead virtuous lives, lead by example, and demonstrate the highest form of Good one can possibly attain, and Douglass exemplifies

of living a slave life and he feared he would walk that path for the remainder of his life. Despite

The term justice is used in some of America's most treasured and valued documents, from the Pledge of Allegiance, to the Constitution, and the Declaration of Independence. Everyone wants to be treated justly whether it's in the courtroom or the local bar. Most people would feel confident giving a definition for justice, but would it be a definition we could universally agree to? Given that justice is a very common term, and something we all want, it's important to have a precise definition. For hundreds of years philosophers have argued, debated, and fought over this topic. Justice can clearly be defined as the intention to conform to truth and fairness. This is true justice.

The two works Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass and The Cry of the Children by Elizabeth Browning is different in several ways but also have some similarities. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is an autobiography created in hopes of ending slavery. Douglass writes about several events that reveal the awfulness of slavery and the effects it has on people. The Cry of Children is a poem written to inform the upper class how harsh the work conditions are for children forced into labor at such a young age. These two literary works express their similar themes through revealing religious hypocrisy, illustration dehumanization in both forms of labor, and creating empathy among the readers for the victims.