Narrative of the Life of Frederick. Douglass: The Role of Literacy in the Lives of Slaves

Narrative of Fredrick Douglass
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Narrative of Fredrick Douglass
In his book, Fredrick Douglass documents several examples of experiences that slaves went through in their owners' hands. In his examples, he categorizes the slaves into two major groups, with one group being that of the privileged slaves who were chosen by their owners out of their loyalty and comely looks to work in the houses. The other group is that of the other slaves who were the ones who were exposed to harsh working conditions in the field and were also deprived of food. The two examples that stand out in Douglass's book are the monthly allowances that slaves in the field were being paid. The allowance consisted of a third-rate corn bushel, pickled pork and poorest quality herrings, which could sustain the slaves. Another example is that of the privileged slaves like himself who could access some better food and could luckily get a chance to study literacy as he did. These two examples are key in showing society today the different categories of slaves according to how they were treated.
Additionally, the book also helps the author downplay the idea that slaves and African Americans are not human. He does this by putting his story in the front line to display humanity's humanity through several activities he conducted. For instance, by being taking center stage to advocate for abolishing slavery, he brings out the human nature that requires everybody to be treated equally regardless of their skin color. Secondly, being a white man and a black woman, the author indirectly illustrates that even white people can reproduce black offspring and be treated equally. Finally, his trickery of influencing the white kids from his neighborhood to teach him how to read and write in exchange for bread is a clear indication that slaves were wise than other white people.
Although Douglass was still a slave while living in Baltimore, the city was a liberating place for him. His mistress gave him the opportunity to read and write when she began to teach him. Although his master ordered Douglass to stop learning, he had already realized that the only way to escape slavery was through education. Without words, he would have no ability to articulate the hypocrisy and horror of slavery. As a result, he paid poor white children to teach him to read and scoured the house in Baltimore for newspapers and books. Furthermore, Douglass was sent around on errands throughout Baltimore. This gave him the opportunity to learn the caulking trade in city, which enabled him to become a skilled worker, earn more, and even hire out his extra time. Fredrick though...