“I was now about twelve years old, and the thought of being a slave for life began to bear heavily upon my heart.” (P.5) Being a slave for life, never having the privilege to live free, never experiencing freedom. This excerpt from Frederick Douglass first autobiography describes the fate many slaves had to live through this time. During the years 1526-1867, every captured had to endure the harsh treatment of the owner and watch how the privileged were able to roam liberally while oneself had to suffer. Douglass felt this firsthand; he saw how the claws of slavery changed tender-hearted people into cold-stone monsters. Various slaves escaped and became abolitionists, people who wanted to end slavery. Douglass was one of them; by speaking about …show more content…
His will to keep learning, keep inspiring, appreciating every moment of his life is what made him such a motivational figure. His hard work and tireless dedication to the abolitionist movement are why he has had such a great impact on the world, now and beforehand. Whenever moments got hard, he remained faithful to his beliefs. When he was at risk of being reenslaved, Douglass worked around it; he moved away to other countries while still advocating for the abolishment of slavery. As a result, “Douglass's fame as an orator increased as he traveled.” (NPS) He could have let discouragement and fear overwhelm him, but his optimistic and spirited outlook allowed him to search for solutions instead. Douglass had to overcome this feeling a marvelous number of times. From this, people can learn to be like him and have some faith when it seems darkness has completely enveloped any hope of light. Based on Digital History’s “Who was Frederick Douglass?” the source explicitly notes, “Douglass served as advisor to presidents. Abraham Lincoln referred to him as the most meritorious man of the nineteenth
Frederick Douglass was one of the most influential men of the anti-slavery movement. He stood up for what he believed in, fought hard to get where he got and never let someone tell him he could not do something. Frederick Douglass made a change in this country that will always be remembered.
Being a slave, Douglass shouldn’t even be able to read, nevermind write a bestselling book. The fact that someone with a background as crazy as Douglass was writing a book exposing what was going on sounded impossible, but once again Douglass made it possible. Doing this made him stand out because he was sharing a story that many people hadn’t heard. What really happened on the plantations wasn’t clear, but Douglass was brave enough to tell the world the truth and share his stories. It is one thing for Douglass to tell his life at a podium or a convention, but sharing it the way he did spoke so much more volume. It broadcasted the hardships of slaves but yet it also showed that Douglass was able to overcome those hurdles. It gave hope to slaves; someone who was abused and documented all of his life was able to learn how to write and then wrote what is today one of the most influential and important books related to the Civil War. Also, in 1845 when he wrote this, what he had done was illegal; he ran away from the plantation he was on and instead of hiding up in the north, he risked his freedom in order to try to give the feeling of having control of your life to other slaves. This book was more than just a way to free slaves; it was a message about perseverance, hope, and
Fredrick Douglass: An Inspiring Life Slavery is a part of American history. It is important that we as the human race and society learn from the mistakes of the past, to do this we must relfect, read and educate ourselfes about it. A former slave by the name of Fredrick Douglass wrote Narrative of the life of Fredrick Douglass to enlighten people of the horrors and inhuman treatment he and other slaves expienced, but in doing so he teaches us about the reslience of the human spirit. Douglass taught himself to read and write in a time when it was illegal for a slave to be educated. Why would a slave want to be educated if it were so dangerous?
The Influence of Frederick Douglass Douglass was a wise man. He held great wisdom with what he said and thought. A man like that with minimal education gave gifts to the masses. His words caressed the livelihood of what was going on, if only other slaves could’ve been acknowledged as he was at the time. The truth gave horrors to those in the south, but they needed the truth to rise up.
Frederick Douglass have to overcome to become where he is today by Experiencing what you have to go through if you were an
Frederick Douglass’s books and speeches had led to the division of the North and the South. During the Civil War Douglass had been a strong believer in the Union. He had even convinced Abraham Lincoln to let African Americans enlist in the army. He had put up recruitment posters saying “Men of color, to arms.” He had been convincing Lincoln of black rights from the start of the war. Even though at the end of the war slaves had earned their freedom, they were still discriminated against.
Frederick Douglass is the most prominent African-American leader of the XIX century. He is a writer, journalist, educator and public speaker representing a democratic America. Moreover, Douglass is a key figure in the abolitionist movement in the African-American media, journalism and literature. He devoted all his courage, fortitude, special talents, and life experience to the struggle for complete liquidation of slavery and its consequences. Frederick Douglass was born in 1818 in slavery in Maryland.
I admire him for all of his work, whether it be speaking or writing. I also admire his bravery and courage to rise up against society, and try to fix what was wrong with it, even in a time when many would not listen to him or his ideas.. I feel that he accomplished many important things, but nothing as crucial as his first autobiography and its later edits. The autobiography really kicked off his epic and storied career, and caused him to be very well-known and famous. Douglass’s greatest lasting impact was his massive dent he made in the slavery and inequality wall. He was one of the first and most influential activists, and the work he did accomplished monumental things. It also paved the way for other great abolitionists, and caused them to work harder for the cause they believed in, even though it was a hard fight. He influenced America greatly, due to his work for both females and African Americans. Frederick Douglass was a very interesting man with a very interesting
He took this initiative because he had experienced the devastating outcomes of slavery on himself and also realized his potential as a free man, therefore, he wanted every single slave to become free from slavery. All of this happened because of Douglass’s knowledge, which plays a significant role as it made him think critically and help him to achieve
Frederick Douglass was born into slavery and through self education gained his freedom and became a
With Douglass’s personal relationships with the president he wouldn’t have had the idea of making the emancipation; if Lincoln did not pass the emancipation the hopes of all African Americans in America would have all been crushed. Even though he loved to help his own color, he was a stronger character and wanted to help not only his race but the women who wanted suffrage as
Douglass had his whole life taken away from him growing up under the rules of a man who didn’t take the time to look past the color of his skin which taught him a lesson that he would carry with him and turn it into something that would change the lives of African Americans around the country. Throughout the narrative he includes details about his thoughts relaying on the thought of one day being free. In the narrative he expresses, “ I was now twelve years old, and the thought of being a slave for life began to bear heavily upon my heart,” ( Douglass, 49 ). Douglass wasn’t as content with being a slave as the others were for they had thought that slavery was a naturally occurring thing that has been going on for as long as they can remember. Douglass figured they was more to this life forced upon him which is why he wanted to learn more and ended up doing just that by giving himself tiny lessons every chance he could without getting caught.
The Narrative of Frederick Douglass is one of the most fascinating books I ever read. I read his narrative with great interest because I admire his resolve to overcome obstacles and oppositions. Douglass refused to allow color or race to act as a barrier. Douglass refused to let it impede in the quest for the American dream. His was one of greatest leaders in the abolitionist movement, a statesman, orator, and writer. He championed for human rights and social injustice. He prepared the way for Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, and Barack Obama. Douglass articulated three key principles that were instrumental in his success. First, the power of spoken and written language has power to promote positive change. Second, you have
By taking away his education, it made Douglass more motivated to gain an education. The owners thought it would make slaves unfit to do their duties. Once Douglass became motivated, he gained the information he needed and had been wanting. He got the education he was once told he could not get and he became a well known
Frederick Douglass wasn’t always known as Frederick Douglass, his original name was Frederick Bailey. He grew up a slave and was taken away as a infant. Civil rights started to occur while he was doing slave work for his slave breaker Covey who beat him until he would break. He knew he needed to escape, and soon he would escape from slavery. Years passed with Covey beating him, until Frederick fought back, and soon he gave up. He knew Covey being weak would give him the chance to escape, and soon he escaped and became the civil rights leader of 1840s to 1868.