The Importance Of Learning To Read And Write Frederick Douglass

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

Frederick Douglas was born into the slave trade in Talbot County, Maryland. He was sent to work on a plantation for the Hugh’s Family for about seven years. This is the location where his learning truly began. His mistress was a “kind, tender-hearted, woman” who treated Frederick as a human instead of property the family owned. This was a dangerous thing for both parties at this time in history it was considered wrong. Frederick States “Slavery proved as injurious to her as it did to me” which I see the connection he had made to her change of personality because of slavery. She had heavenly qualities that slavery was able to divest from her. It was injurious to Fredrick not only for the lashings a salve would

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

People often wonder about the struggles of slave life, including the fact that it was extremely difficult to become literate as a slave. Frederick Douglass, who was once a slave who learned to read and write, outlines these obstacles and the effects that they had on him in a chapter titled “Learning to Read and Write” within his autobiography. Said chapter reveals Douglass’s innermost thoughts and attitudes towards many things during his time as a slave, including his mistress, slavery itself, and reading. Douglass displays an appreciative and later aggravated tone towards his mistress, an outraged tone towards slavery, and an enthusiastic tone that later becomes resigned and despairing towards reading, exemplifying that tone can strongly influence the portrayal of a topic.

Throughout the history of slavery in the United States, it was common practice not only for slaveholders to neglect to teach their slaves to read or write, but also for them to outright forbid literacy among slaves. This was done in order to limit the slaves knowledge and modes of communication, making it more difficult for them to learn about the abolitionist movement or for for them to share their situation with the world outside of slavery. Like many other slaves, Frederick Douglass was not allowed to learn to read or write. In his autobiography; “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”, Douglass retells how he managed to become literate in a time where most African Americans were forbidden from literacy, and how this knowledge allowed him to eventually escape slavery.

In the excerpt “Learning to Read and Write”, Frederick Douglass talks about his experiences in slavery living in his masters house and his struggle to learn how to read and write. Frederick Douglass was an African American social reformer, orator, writer, and statesman. Some of his other writings include “The Heroic Slave”, “My Bondage and My Freedom”, and “Life and Times of Frederick Douglass”. In this excerpt, Frederick Douglass uses an empathic tone, imagery, certain verb choice, contrast, and metaphors to inform African Americans of how important it is to learn to read and write and also to inform a white American audience of the evils of slavery. I find Frederick Douglass to

Frederick Douglass effectively persuades his audience to show the crucial need for learning to read and write and to inform how slavery was a true

Education is something that is often taken for granted in this day and age. Kids these days rebel against going to school all together. In the essays “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me” by Sherman Alexie and “Learning to Read and Write” by Frederick Douglass, we learn of two young men eager for knowledge. Both men being minors and growing up in a time many years apart, felt like taking how to read and write into their own hands, and did so with passion. On the road to a education, both Alexie and Douglass discover that education is not only pleasurable, but also painful. Alexie and Douglass both grew up in different times, in different environments, and in different worlds. They both faced different struggles and had different achievements, but they were not all that different. Even though they grew up in different times they both had the same views on how important of education was. They both saw education as freedom and as a way of self-worth even though they achieved their education in different ways. They both had a strong mind and a strong of sense of self-motivation.

Frederick Douglass was a young slave with an aspiring dream to learn and further his life of knowledge and education. There was only one thing stopping him: his lack of freedom. The ability to read and access to an education is a liberating experience that results in the formation of opinions, critical-thinking, confidence, and self-worth. Slave owners feared slaves gaining knowledge because knowledge is power and they might have a loss of power, which would result to the end of cheap labor. Slave owners made the slaves feel as if they had no self-worth or confidence. If the slaves got smarter they could potentially begin to learn how unjust and wrong slavery was and they would have enough reason to rebel against it. Douglass was learning how to read and write from his slave owner’s wife. Unfortunately, both of them were told how wrong it was for him to be learning because a slave was not to be educated and was deemed unteachable. There was also another fear that the slave owners had. They feared that slaves would have better communication skills which would lead to escape and ways to avoid slavery. Reading opens your mind to new ideas and new knowledge one has never had the opportunity of knowing.

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.

This text had great meaning to many because of the heartfelt emotions that Douglass was expressing to the audience through his amazing words. This text had an immense impact on the equality for African Americans. Many look back on this account now and can’t grasp the idea that African Americans or blacks were slaves to others and treated as poorly as Douglass describes. Douglass was taught to read and write by his owner’s wife, but his owner made his wife stop teaching him because he didn’t want Douglass to have any sort of benefit or advantage over him, but clearly, it was too late. The women who had been teaching Douglass was very kind to him and almost, treated him as if he were her own son, but once she stopped teaching Douglass, her kindness towards him began to fade.

As a child, Douglass was taught the alphabet by his owners wife Sophia. After a run in with her husband, Douglas decides he will continue his education. Education leads him to see freedom as a goal that can be accomplished. The question opposed is, Does inequality in educational opportunities affect the magnitude of values? Weather privileged or under privileged the values are taught by the educators themselves which was Douglass. Furthermore,values permeate every aspect of education. and value-free education is unattainable. Once he obtained knowledge he began to read more. Reading certain books made him wonder why he was excluded from the rights granted to white men. ''The reading of these documents enabled me to utter my thoughts, and

Fredrick Douglass had received the greatest gift of education overcoming these harsh obstacles with the true meaning of grit. As a slave Fredrick Douglass was not supposed to learn due to the fact that he wasn’t seen as a human. From his drive to learn Fredrick Douglass found out how this world is supposed to be for instance on how one person should treat another. Even from learning Fredrick Douglass still had the perception that he was a slave for life due to the oppression of slave owners had on slaves. As a slave reading will be punishable by death. Without education slaves felt more below to the slave owner’s slaves were not on equal ground. Fredrick Douglass knew education was important from learning to read gave Fredrick Douglass a different perception on life detesting the slave owners and having the will to want to be free.

Through his readings he discovered his self worth and how wrongful it is to be a slave. After acquiring knowledge it helps slaves understand how wrong it is to be slaves and to view themselves as humans instead of property. According to The Black Scholar,” Exposure of slaves to the teachings of Douglass caused much unrest. As they began to understand better, many situations developed in slave holding areas that were difficult to control”(Clendon 11). Understanding slavery is wrong is the first step in becoming free. Although Douglass admits that education is not the only key to freedom, it is a building block to not only escape but be successful once becoming free. During that time period many whites truly believed that African Americans were not capable of living free in society so they must be put to work. Once a slave becomes educated and self reliant it then creates a problem for the slave

Literacy, the ability to read, write, and understand a language, is an extremely important part of modern society. It’s second nature for us now to read street signs as we drive past, food labels in the grocery store, etc. Not to mention the ability to enjoy novels. Being illiterate means that you can’t do any of that. You probably wouldn’t even know how your name is spelled or what it even looks like. Literacy (or lack of) has greatly affected an abundance of people’s lives throughout history. Three authors-Sandra Cisneros, Frederick Douglass, and Sherman Alexie- share their backgrounds, the influence that literacy has had on their lives, and the challenges that they faced to get to where they are. The similarities and differences