Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. New York: Dover Publications, 1995.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass depicts one slave’s journey from the heartache of slavery to joyfulness of freedom. Frederick Douglass is one of the most renowned American authors. His narrative is one of the most read slave accounts. Its focus is on white’s treatment on innocent African Americans and covers many horrid experiences of slave life. The book ingeniously opens the eyes of every reader to the hatred and prejudices of slavery. The book brings alive the constant struggle of life in the 1800s. It was perfectly written to reach the emotion of the reader. I appreciated the variety of topics discussed, such as education, …show more content…
Empowerment over slaves loomed in every corner. I came to notice that masters treated slaves as property, not true human beings. In my view, the author best describes the hardship of overcoming racism in this quote, “Slaves sing when they are most unhappy. The songs of the slave represents the sorrows of his heart; and he is relieved by its tears.” The author went on to describe the treatment of whites versus blacks. Like Douglass, I was enraged with their treatment. Why did only the white get suitable clothing, food, and shelter? Agreeing with Douglass, the punishment from the masters were too severe and not necessary, not matter the offence. While reading the book, it struck me how lightly they treated murder, a clear commandment and forbiddance found in God’s word. Frederick recalls this by saying, “Killing a slave, or any colored person, in Talbot County, Maryland, is not treated as a crime, either by the courts or the community.” It disturbed me how the color of a person a crime was committed against greatly determined the outcome of punishment. Neglect and abuse towards the black race, and the high regard to the white race, were made clear in every chapter. The author, in extravagant detail, told of the many instances racism was
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass depicts one slave’s journey from the heartache of slavery to joyfulness of freedom. Frederick Douglass is one of the most renowned American authors. His narrative is one of the most read slave accounts. Its focus is on white’s treatment on innocent African Americans and covers many horrid experiences of slave life. The book ingeniously opens the eyes of every reader to the hatred and prejudices of slavery. The book brings alive the constant struggle of life in the 1800s. It was perfectly written to reach the emotion of the reader. I appreciated the variety of topics discussed, such as education, …show more content…
Empowerment over slaves loomed in every corner. I came to notice that masters treated slaves as property, not true human beings. In my view, the author best describes the hardship of overcoming racism in this quote, “Slaves sing when they are most unhappy. The songs of the slave represents the sorrows of his heart; and he is relieved by its tears.” The author went on to describe the treatment of whites versus blacks. Like Douglass, I was enraged with their treatment. Why did only the white get suitable clothing, food, and shelter? Agreeing with Douglass, the punishment from the masters were too severe and not necessary, not matter the offence. While reading the book, it struck me how lightly they treated murder, a clear commandment and forbiddance found in God’s word. Frederick recalls this by saying, “Killing a slave, or any colored person, in Talbot County, Maryland, is not treated as a crime, either by the courts or the community.” It disturbed me how the color of a person a crime was committed against greatly determined the outcome of punishment. Neglect and abuse towards the black race, and the high regard to the white race, were made clear in every chapter. The author, in extravagant detail, told of the many instances racism was