Frederick Douglass Learning To Read And Write Literary Analysis

People would never believe that love, which would appear to be the most content feeling ever, is actually a destructive perpetual nightmare. Destruction leads to fear, and is everlasting. Light in that individual's life suddenly darkens and then hatred possesses the soul. How is it that such positivities appear to be negative? Well, such is essence in “Learning to Read and Write” by Frederick Douglass when Douglass hoped to fulfil his dream of escaping slavery by improving his academics; however, he revealed that agony flourished as a result of expanding his knowledge. He became self-aware, and came to a conclusion that slavery was a condemnation rather than a gift. A student named Ashley Lopez responded to Douglass’s statement and expressed
Douglass was able to approach an Irishman who was offering him insights on where to run away and escape to. Although this may appear to be beneficial towards Douglass, he silently rejected the Irishmen’s help because of his anxiety of being used. As means of revealing his fear, Douglass made known that: “I fear they might be treacherous” (Douglass 149). Knowledge made him more aware of his surroundings; however, it proved to be regretful that he gained knowledge because it made him paranoid and scared to be betrayed and used, even by those he had never met before. He did not know the Irishmen, yet he judged them based on the fact that they was white. If Douglass accepted the Irishmen’s offer to run away and escape, perhaps he would have been free sooner and this shows that knowledge is a curse. By virtue of Douglass’s fear, he also asserts that: “I was afraid that these seemingly good men might use me” (Douglass 149). His fear got in the way of opportunities for him. It is disclosed that knowledge brought the negative factor of fear into Douglass’s life, thus, it is a