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the narrative life of Frederick douglass

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the narrative life of Frederick douglass
The “Narrative life of Frederick Douglass” was more than an autobiography. It summarized historically, politically and legally what it was like to be a slave back in the 1840’s and on, but through he’s experience & journey also provided a much broader picture and detailed insight of what actually takes a slave to gain freedom and how each individual must free themselves from slavery rather than thinking that is just something that its given. In he’s autobiography; Douglass writes all of the hardships he encountered since he was born until the day that he becomes a free man. His words transmit such emotion and feeling that its almost unbearable to read and believe all the horrors that took place that for many, many years slaves had to endure. With perseverance Frederick Douglass escaped slavery, he made himself free mentally & physically and he explains just how luckily he was to achieve that.

Just like the majority of slaves, Frederick Washington Bailey learned very young that he as a human being had no value or respect in a “white mans world”. He estimated his birthday, he didn’t know he’s white father’s whereabouts and was separated from his family young enough to barely remember. Throughout his life, under the ownership of various Masters, Douglass experienced many life-changing battles. While Douglass lived in the wye plantation, he witnessed the cruelty of slavery first hand. Beatings, starvation, cruelty like that off his aunt Hester (that was whipped to death), the murder of Demby, and he’s wife cousins (a young girl, babysitter) that was also brutally beaten by Mrs. Hicks. Death and whippings left and right and no penalties were given. Under Mr. Covey’s the slave – Breaker command, Douglass mentions no one had ever worked him so hard to the point where he though of committing suicide because he was so exhausted. Until then, Fredrick describes its readers how a “ man was made a slave” stripped from his entire god given rights and privilege’s.

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