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A nation that was struggling financially and fatally due to a war to fight for equality. Abraham Lincoln may have thought at one point that it wasn’t possible that blacks and whites could live peacefully in America, but when abolitionist and black leaders confronted him head on, he never spoke of it again. Why? Because Abraham Lincoln was humble, he listened, many of Lincoln’s mistakes and flaws could be viewed as too large to ignore but because Abraham Lincoln was the man he was, he fixed his mistakes. He stood by his decisions because he saw an end in sight. A better America.…
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Frederick Douglass - The author and narrator of the Narrative. Douglass, a rhetorically skilled and spirited man, is a powerful orator for the abolitionist movement. One of his reasons for writing the Narrative is to offer proof to critics who felt that such an articulate and intelligent man could not have once been a slave. The Narrative describes Douglass’s experience under slavery from his early childhood until his escape North at the age of twenty. Within that time, Douglass progresses from unenlightened victim of the dehumanizing practices of slavery to educated and empowered young man. He gains the resources and convictions to escape to the North and wage a political fight against the institution of slavery.…
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“What to the Slave, is the Fourth of July” is a powerful testament of American hypocrisy. To read—let alone be present while the speech was delivered—would bring an overwhelming surge of shame and embarrassment of my actions (i.e. partaking in the active slave trade or lack of abolitionist support). Though many verses from this work are undeniably gut wrenching to the audience, the most thought provoking and life altering was when Douglass stated plainly, “the sunlight that brought life and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. This Fourth of July is yours, not mine.”…
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In his speech, which was later published as The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro Frederick Douglass explores the injustices that plagued the African-American community during the time period in which he lived. Douglass questioned, “Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us?” These principles, “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” were not granted to the African-American population. In regards to the Fourth of July, Douglass stated that the white Americans “shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery”. Therefore, through…
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In the 1800 's the United States was separated into different sections- The North and the South. They both had many differences but one of the most controversial differences was the issue of slavery. Thomas Jefferson believed that all men should be created equal and included anti-slavery in The Declaration of Independence (Skiba 318). But pressure from Southerner 's led to its deletion. Although at one point slavery was illegal there was still smuggling of slaves and many Southerner 's felt that it was good for the economy. More than a million African American 's were enslaved in the United States and were treated brutally (319). Frederick Douglass, a former slave, spoke of his experiences being a slave and not only how he survived but how he escaped. The purpose of this essay is to inform audiences the evil reality of slavery and the experiences of one slave, Frederick Douglass. Through literacy and…
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In the speech “ What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” given by Frederick Douglass, he announces his goals for the future men and women of the United States. Douglass is a well known, powerful public speaker who was born into slavery then later escaped at the age of twenty one. On the day of his speech, he addresses an audience at the Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society during a time where people of the United States visioned the total abolition of slavery as a profound cause. He speaks against slavery as well as pushes for equality of all people.…
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Freedom and Equality is something everyone wants and what people try and live by. If you think about it, back then everyone wasn’t “free” whether it had to do with being an African American or a woman. “What the Black Man Wants” by Frederick Douglass and “What the American Woman Wants” by Elizabeth Cady Stanton are both two speeches that are trying to persuade their audiences for freedom basically. Douglass is arguing that all African American should be free to live life for themselves and Stanton argues that women need their rights just like men because they deserve it. Both of the speeches have pathos and logos to prove their arguments, while Douglass uses…
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Perspective is everything. I used to think context was more important, but now I have doubts. Frederick Douglass voiced the obvious problem with celebrating the "birth of an independent nation" in the Declaration of Independence. But of course, many of the signors, the very writer, of this document was a slaveholder. That the landed gentry could live such hypocrisy is horrifying, but no longer surprising to me. Douglass said out loud what they must have felt and known, but denied. Such is the life of the powerful. The declaration document is ruling class-centric and the makers were as well. Even as Jefferson pled for rights to the people, against many of his federalist contemporaries, he was living the lie. Douglass relies the use of…
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In Douglass’ speech, his tone mainly appeals to emotions. He engages the listeners emotionally by stating his opinion over the topic of slavery. Douglass states, “My subject, then, fellow-citizens, is AMERICAN SLAVERY. I shall see this day and its popular characteristics from the slave’s point of view,” (52-54). This quote from his speech goes to show that he is standing up as a person who has actually experienced times of slavery. There is a great deal of credibility in Douglass’ writing because he refers to actual encounters that the African-American’s had dealt with in the way they were being treated. “I say it with a sad sense of the disparity between us. I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary! Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us,” (19-22). Douglass is implying that he, along with the rest of the former slaves, do not feel that they are included in the celebration of the Fourth of July. He and the former slaves feel this way because even though they are said to have freedom, the people in the country…
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Frederick Douglass was invited to give a speech at an anti-slavery meeting during the fourth of July celebration enlightening the citizens, by what the fourth of July meant for blacks and how they felt during a day that represent freedom for whites and not for blacks.…
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Douglass was one of the few slaves who had the opportunity to talk about his own personal experiences. Many whites did not accept slaves as truly human after obtaining their freedom. Douglass described the way society lives in New Bedford, which was full of dissatisfactions. He wanted to demonstrate humanity to the readers that the perception of inequality is flawed. For example, Douglass witnessed a betrayer as he quoted, “With this, a number of them bolted at him; but they were intercepted by some more timid than themselves, and the betrayer escaped their vengeance; and has not been seen in New Bedford since” (2). A progressive urban environment is another key for freedom, but Douglass realized during his stay in New Bedford that although the conditions are better, there is a wide range of injustice.…
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Frederick Douglass is an African American icon. Douglass is a man who possessed much strength and very few weaknesses. Frederick Douglass was intelligent, courageous, determined, mentally & physically strong, Knowledgeable, and creative. He found great pleasure in his work with others and often put them above himself. He was rarely seen as aggressive when he fought Covey, he did not actually fight back but simply resisted Covey's attack. He was tireless in his devotion to abolish slavery. He toured the North and gave speeches, wrote journals, and told his life story time and time again. He provided a voice for those who were still demented from the horrors of slavery. Douglass was a brilliant writer and speaker. He utilized many rhetorical devices and was found impressive to all who listened to him speak. He was diligent, never giving up on things that were important to him, learning how to read and write, escaping from slavery, and helping his black brethren. He was also selfless, devoting himself to the cause of women's suffrage in his later years.…
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Typical slaves work on cotton plantations, are uneducated, and do not receive special treatment. This does not describe the life of the slave, Frederick Douglass. He is not your typical slave. He wrote this narrative in order to share his life, and discuss how slavery is harmful to not only the slaves, but also to their owners. He shares many similar aspects of a normal slave, but we can also see that he was not treated like most slaves during this time. We see how Frederick Douglass shares his interesting and different experience and how the relationship between him and his owners differed than most.…
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Throughout reading "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass", one does not simply learn and discover the everyday average slave life style, Douglass incorporates his own mental philosophies as to how slavery and society is ran during that time by telling it from his own first person prospective, and he also uncovers the evils that slavery hides. Slaves during the antebellum of the Civil War had faced not only many physical threats by their slaveholder or master, but mental dangers as well.…
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Let’s talk about equality. The ideal of equality has been partially implemented if we were to compare the equality problems America had and has between 1776 and 2017. Nevertheless, women have a harder time climbing the executive and legislative ladder just because they are women. A significant number of Americans still believe that women are inferior to men. Policemen pullover African Americans because they believe they are affiliated with gangs or they carry guns just because they are black. So it is clear that Americans have not live up to the ideal of equality expressed in…
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