Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass Rhetorical Analysis

Even though the words of his master degrade Douglass, they also inspire him to pursue reading and freedom more passionately. When Douglass sees how intimidated his master, Hugh Auld, is at the idea of his wife, Sophia Auld, teaching young Frederick to read, he realizes that knowledge is truly power. He feels the constraint his master imposed on him his entire life, and he begins to understand how to free himself. Douglass writes that, “From that moment I understood the pathway from slavery to freedom…I was gladdened by the invaluable

During the 1800’s, the institution of slavery was still ongoing in the few slave states left in America. Slavery was still proving to be unjust and unfair, not allowing for African Americans to be considered equals. However, some slaves were able to overcome the many restrictions and boundaries that slavery forced upon them. In Frederick Douglass’ essay “Learning to Read and Write,” Douglass portrays himself as an intelligent and dignified slave who’s able to overcome the racial boundaries placed upon him. Frederick Douglass saw that his only pathway to freedom was through literacy, so his goal was to learn how to read and write no matter the circumstances. Douglass realized

He discloses the slave owner’s ability to control all of the material that slaves were exposed to using an anecdote regarding slave’s only exposure to freedom; during the holiday season, slave masters give their slaves a taste of supposed freedom to make them believe that freedom is actually more oppressive than slavery itself. Douglass explains that they promoted drinking and recreational activities during the holidays “to disgust their slaves with freedom” (Douglass, 84-85). The anecdote is used to prove to the audience that slave owners had complete control of their slaves and exploited this power to manipulate the slaves. By promoting a false reality during their time off and creating a false image of freedom, slave masters were able to effectively control their slaves' impression of freedom, so that they would believe that slavery was the better option. Douglass uses irony to further this point. In addition to manipulating the slave’s perception of freedom, slave masters also prevented them from gaining an education, a quintessential factor in gaining freedom. Thomas Auld justified this by saying that knowledge would only make the slaves “discontented and unhappy” and vehemently stood against Douglass gaining an education (Cite). Douglass applies irony to the situation by stating that Auld’s lecture was what had driven

Frederick Douglass, the author of the Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass was a self-taught slave that was able to escape the brutality of slavery in the year of 1838. Frederick Douglass’s book is separated into 3 main sections, including, a beginning, middle, and end. The purpose of the narrative is to improve the audience's understanding of Douglass’s experience of being a slave, the horrible treatment slaves received, and how Douglass was able to overcome and escape slavery. All throughout the narrative, Douglass uses many rhetorical devices, including, diction, imagery, and syntax, which helps the audience understand, one of his main chapters, chapter 5. In this chapter Douglass implies that the overall purpose is to emphasize the animalistic, inhuman treatment slaves received, how Douglass felt about leaving Colonel Lloyd’s plantation, and his luck of being able to move to Mr. and Mrs. Auld's.

In like manner, the slave will become worthless to his master. The author also wrote, “I now understood what had been to me a most perplexing difficulty--to wit, the white man’s power to enslave the black man. It was a grand achievement, and I prized highly. From that moment, I understood the pathway from slavery to freedom” (Douglass 20). Douglass began to realize the power that the white man felt in owning slaves and keeping the slaves illiterate. He understood this was powerful, but Douglass was aware that freedom was more powerful. Furthermore, “In learning to read, I owe almost as much to the bitter opposition of my master, as to the kindly aid of my mistress. I acknowledge the benefit of both” (Douglass 20). As. Mrs. Auld teaches Douglass to read, Mr. Auld is set on the fact that this education given to Douglass will provide him with confidence and will isolate him from others. His curiosity getting the better of him, this only makes Douglass want to learn more. Given these points, Douglass finally learns that all humans are equal, and the Blacks were stolen from Africa like “robbers.”. Another example being, “The first step had been taken. Mistress, in teaching me the alphabet, had given me the inch, and no precaution could prevent me from taking the ell” (Douglass 25). This happens to be a metaphorical comparison between units of measurement and Douglass’s achievements. The “inch” metaphorically represents the first step of

The “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” is an autobiography in which Frederick Douglass reflects on his life as a slave in America. He writes this book as a free slave, in the North, while slavery was still running its course before the Civil War. Through his effective use of rhetorical strategies, Frederick Douglass argues against the institution of slavery by appealing to pathos and ethos, introducing multiple anecdotes, using satirical irony, and explaining the persuasive effects of slavery and reasoning behind keeping slaves uneducated.

Douglass was motivated to learn how to read by hearing his master condemn the education of slaves. Mr. Auld declared that an education would “spoil” him and “forever unfit him to be a slave” (2054). He believed that the ability to read makes a slave “unmanageable” and “discontented” (2054). Douglass discovered that the “white man’s power to enslave the black man” (2054) was in his literacy and education. As long as the

The power that they have over their slaves has a damaging effect on their moral health because they are careless. Douglass describes adultery and rape as typical behavior patterns of slaveholders which damage their families. Sophia Auld is Douglass's main illustration of the corruption of slave owners. The power of slaveholding changes Sophia from a nice woman to a demon. She went from a kind, caring and loving person into a typical mean slave master. She was no longer able to teach Douglass how to read because her husband disapproved it. Slaveholders gain and keep power over blacks from their birth onward by keeping them ignorant of basic facts about themselves. For example slaves didn't know their birth date or who their parents were. They didn't want slaves to have a natural sense of identity. Slave children were not allowed to learn to read or write because this would lead slaves to question their rights.

Since slaves were not allowed schooling, illiteracy was very common for African Americans slaves. For many people not accustomed to slavery, it was believed that slavery was simply a state of natural being. People believed African Americans were inherently incapable of residing in their society and consequently should live as laborers for white slave owners. Enforcing illiteracy among children deprived them of their necessary morality and ethics. Southern slave owners used this to their advantage control how the remainder of the country viewed slavery. If slaves were illiterate, they were incapable of telling their side of slavery. Douglass is saying that knowledge is key to winning against slavery. His quote, “You have seen how a man was made a slave; you shall see how a slave was made a man” (Douglass) describes his transformation as a slave with little knowledge and education to a man who has become very knowledgeable and educated to beat slavery. Douglass uses knowledge as the road to his freedom. He seeks knowledge and education to help slaves voice the wrong doings slaveholders are bringing upon blacks. Douglass helps slaves discover their selves not as slaves but as men instead.

In The Life of Frederick Douglass An American Slave, written by himself the author asserts that the way to enslave someone is to keep them from learning at all. Douglass supports his claim by, first, when Frederick was small he was never able to tell his age or the date, and secondly, they were never allowed to be taught how to read that was something always hidden from him as a young child. The author’s purpose is to inform the reader that as a slave there were so many things they were not allowed to have that we may take for granted, in order to make it very clear that we should not take our education and opportunities for granted. Based on The Life Of Frederick Douglass An American Slave, Douglass is writing for the white people who believed that slavery was right, he wanted to make it very clear that the slaves and Douglass had nothing handed to them.

In the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, the dehumanization of slaves often occurs, as white plantation owners view slaves as objects undeserving of humane treatment in order to uphold power and warrant their unjust practices. Limiting knowledge and prohibiting education for African Americans was one strategy common among slave owners, as “it is the wish of most masters within my knowledge to keep their slaves thus ignorant” (17). Due to their lack of intellect, slaves could not recognize the injustices of the slavery system and had little chances of escaping. When Mrs. Auld attempts to teach Frederick Douglass how to read and write, Mr. Auld claims, “A n***** should know nothing but to obey

Amongst the injustice and brutality of slavery is the exclusion of education and knowledge. The slaveholder would tactically deprive the slaves of any knowledge because it would expose them of slavery’s injustice. This act dehumanized the slaves to a great extent, and at the same time forbade them to pursue any form of freedom, physically or spiritually. Hugh Auld, Douglass’s master reasoned that “it was unlawful, as well as unsafe, to teach a slave to read” and believed “If you have a nigger an inch, he will take an ell.” (Douglass 40, 41) Auld advocated his reasoning by calling a slave “unmanageable,” “unhappy,” and “discontented” if enlightened. Douglass however understood differently. The withdrawal of literacy and knowledge, he believed, was one of the greater factors keeping blacks inferior to whites in society. The Narrative also documents the many physiological effects of slaveholding. Douglass carefully explains the masters whipping their slaves when they least deserve it, and overlooking their deeds when they most deserve it. The killing of a slave is also considered the least of an offense or crime, and is simply gone

Among the many ways in which slaves resisted, spreading education proved to be very common. Within the 17th and 18th centuries, slaves were forbidden from learning to read or write. By preventing slaves from becoming literate, white individuals maintained their superiority. Therefore, in order to challenge the ideology of “white supremacy,” slaves began to educate themselves. For example, in his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Douglass, an African American boy born into slavery, explains how the subtle act of educating himself ultimately led to his freedom. Though it was against the law to teach slaves how to read and write, Douglass managed to receive lessons and eventually become literate. Knowing that education

Douglass' cousin told him the city was beautiful and Douglass knew it couldn't be any worse than the plantation. When Douglass meets his new owners, he described Hugh Auld's wife, Sophia Auld, as having a kindly face. Douglass learned what might have been one of his biggest lessons as a slave from these overseers. Sophia, the wife of Hugh Auld, had never owned a slave before, therefore she treated him almost as if he were a child of hers. She taught him the alphabet and some other minor words before Hugh took notice of what she was doing. Mr. Auld told his wife "…it is unlawful, as well as unsafe, to teach a slave to read." (Douglass, p.78) Hugh goes on to say "A nigger should know nothing but to obey his master… 'if you teach that nigger how to read, there would be no keeping him. It would forever make him unfit to be a slave.'" (Douglass, p.78) Douglass overheard every word that hissed out of Hugh Auld's mouth. Sophia Auld had been lessoned in the ways of slave managing now. She discontinued her teaching to Frederick and began to treat him as the property they considered him to be. Douglass' mind frame changed completely after hearing Auld's words. He realized that education was the key in order to obtain his freedom, "…to wit, the white man's power to enslave the black man." (Douglass, p.78) Douglass continued to pursue his education on his own. He would trade

Fredrick Douglass’s “Learning to Read and Write”, gives readers insight into the struggles of being a slave with intelligence, but more importantly into his experience. In his essay, Douglass shows how he fought to obtain knowledge; however, a reading of his story will reveal that what he learned changed him for the better. Michael Scott, a former EOF student read the story and believed that Douglass’s intelligence was a destructive and to a certain degree pointless. Contrary to Scott’s statement, Douglass’s knowledge wasn’t more of a curse than a blessing. Being a slave was everyone’s curse. Douglass went into depression because he hadn’t had the same experience as other slaves and finally felt what it was really like to be a slave when he was punished for his knowledge. However just because his knowledge is what got him into trouble doesn’t necessarily make him, being an intelligent slave; a curse nor does it mean that he had absolutely no alternatives to his condition. In fact, he above most other slaves had the upper hand when it came to creating his own alternative. Douglass’s intelligence helped him become autodidactic, manipulate situations to benefit him, and develop an ambition to become free.