“ Agitate! Agitate! Agitate!” ( Huggins,180). These are the words of Fredrick Douglass that could represent the way he lived his life. Not willing to accept his life as a slave, he rose to become a great and honorable man that held a voice of influence over the reform movement’s throughout the 19th century. He is one of the American leaders who provided a powerful voice for human rights and racial injustice during this period of American history.
Throughout his life he was first and foremost an abolitionist, fighting against slavery until its elimination. He was a man dedicated to a cause, determined to try everything in his power to fight for what he believed fair, which was racial equality. As a young man Fredrick had fire; a burning incentive to change the world. Towards the end of his life he began to lose that sense of hope and idealism he had once shown.
Despite not achieving what he wanted, he will always be credited for his hard effort as a great black man. He lived in a dominant white society but was able to speak out, participate in government affairs, and share his ideals and set of principals with the nation. Though he may have not accomplished the goals he had hoped for, he can be seen as a man who would mark the beginning of the long arduous struggle over the continuous fight for racial equality. Fredrick Douglass based his ideas of reform on two different and interconnected principles. These were the issues of religion and morality and also upon the Declaration of Independence, which represent the set of ideals upon which the nation had established itself.
The importance of Christian morality was especially important throughout the 19th century due to the second great awakening, which caused many people to be influenced by what they perceived to be morally right. Fredrick based his argument that slavery was a sin before God. He wanted the American people to see it was their Christian duty to help the slaves. “ Heaven help the poor slaves….” ( Huggins, 70). He was dedicated and saw his cause as “righteous in the eyes of god” (Huggins, 32). putting his life constantly at risk.
He delivered many speeches throughout his lifetime and spoke of the horrible atrocities and evil that was perpetrated against black people under slavery. He wanted to “arouse the callous hearts of the American people” (Huggins, 70). He felt he could not stand by b...
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..., at the annual meeting of the Equal Rights Association, Douglas addressed the urgency of the vote of black men. With the establishment of the fifteenth amendment extending the vote to black men and not women friction was created between the two causes and greatly split them. “Douglass claimed that it was the “negro hour” and their rights had to be secured first.” ( Huggins, 121).
Fredrick Douglass did not reach his ultimate goal of “ racial equality.” This is because society was not ready to accept and think of blacks as equals. Racism was deeply rooted within American society. America had always been a nation where white American men believed they were superior; they were pragmatic and highly invested in the ideology of “manifest destiny.” They wanted to limit any possibility of their power to be taken away. If blacks were granted full equality then white men’s social and economic status could be threatened. Also, there was the simple fact that even white people, who had thought that slavery was a sin and fought for its abolition, didn’t think of blacks as their full equals. They refused to associate and interact with blacks. This represented the “separate but equal” doctrine.
After suffering the overwhelming ferociousness and inhumanity of being a slave for over two decades , a black man by the name of Fredrick Douglass fled from enslavement and began to make a concerted effort to advance himself as a human being. Combating many obstacles and resisting numerous temptations, Douglass worked assiduously to develop into a knowledgeable gentleman rather than the involuntary alternative of being an unenlightened slave. In doing so, Douglass successfully immerged as one of the Civil War era’s most prominent antislavery orators. From his first major public speech at the age of 23, Douglass became widely renowned as a premier spokesperson for Black slaves and the movement for the abolition of slavery. In one of Douglass’ most distinguished speeches, “The Meaning of July 4th for the Negro,” he uses the intermittent occasion of speaking on behalf of African Americans to a multitude of White Americans to outline arguments against slavery. In that very speech, Douglass made it clear that, like countless African Americans during this time period,
From before the country’s conception to the war that divided it and the fallout that abolished it, slavery has been heavily engrained in the American society. From poor white yeoman farmers, to Northern abolitionist, to Southern gentry, and apathetic northerners slavery transformed the way people viewed both their life and liberty. To truly understand the impact that slavery has had on American society one has to look no further than those who have experienced them firsthand. Frederick Douglass, an escaped slave and advocate for the abolitionist, is on such person. Douglass was a living contradiction to American society during his time. He was an African-American man, self-taught, knowledgeable, well-spoken, and a robust writer. Douglass displayed a level of skill that few of his people at the time could acquire. With his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave Written by Himself, Douglass captivated the people of his time with his firsthand accounts into the horror and brutality that is the institution of slavery.
1.) Fredrick Douglass’s purpose in this speech was to explain the wrongfulness of slavery in America. Fredrick Douglass states in his speech “Are the great principles of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us?” and “The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity, and independence, bequeathed by your fathers is shared by you, not by me.” These prove that the freedom and independence Americans have aren’t shared with the Africans when it should be that Africans have those rights as well. Frederick Douglass then talked about how badly whites treat blacks and how wrong it is. “There are 72 crimes in Virginia which, if committed by a black man, subject him to a punishment of death, while
Fredrick Douglass once said that “Without a struggle, there can be no progress.” Douglass grew up as a slave and when he was 20 years old he took the riskiest journey of his life to escape from slavery. The Narrative of Fredrick Douglass has a lot of points to reflect on; however, here are couples I’ve found important. His autobiography gave a glimpse into the horrors of slavery. The author shares his experiences of seeing his aunt being beaten and not knowing anything even their own birthdates. He makes assumptions about the slave owners lives before becoming slave masters, and assumes the reader will have sympathy for the slaves and try to see their side.
The Life of Fredrick Douglass shows how slavery could of not only affected the slaves but the owners as well. Thomas Auld was overall a cowardly owner and quite tough compared to other slaveholders. Douglass believed that since Auld obtained slave owning from marriage, it made him more of an unpleasant master because he wasn’t used to being around slavery and having so much power. Fredrick Douglass also was convinced that religious slaveholders were false Christians because they became more self-righteous and thought that God gave them the power to hold slaves. By telling stories to the reader, Douglass hoped to bring awareness to the harsh subject of slavery and show how the slaves kept hope during these miserable times.
Frederick Douglass, an abolitionist who altered America's views of slavery through his writings and actions. Frederick's life as a slave had the greatest impact on his writings. Through his experience as a slave, he developed emotion and experience for him to become a successful abolitionist writer. He experienced harsh treatment and his hate for slavery and desire to be free caused him to write Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. In his Narrative, he wrote the story of his miserable life as a slave and his fight to be free. His motivation behind the character (himself) was to make it through another day so that maybe one day he might be free. By speaking out, fighting as an abolitionist and finally becoming an author, Douglass's transformation from a slave into a man.
Overall, Douglass’ narrative was in hopes that it would lean somewhat toward “hastening the glad day of deliverance to the millions of my brethren in bonds.” (Blackpast). Considering the depth of Douglass’ work and his life is an inspiring example of bridge building across causes and generations. True activism of historical events and writings with a strong legacy that speaks of the importance of spanning centuries to come. Once at the time when freedoms were established by the 14th amendment are now being used in terms of society and all different
Frederick Douglass used family values, basic human rights, and religion to persuade the northern white audience toward the cause of abolition. He expects his readers will share his “hate [for] the corrupt, slaveholding, woman whipping, cradle-plundering, partial and hypocritical Christianity of [southern slaveholders]” (Douglass 71). American slavery does not exist in today due partly to Douglass’s effort to help advance the cause of abolition.
Frederick Douglass defined his manhood through his education and his freedom. As a slave he realized "the white man's power to enslave the black man".*(Narrative 273) That power was through mental and physical enslavement. Douglass knew that becoming literate would be "the pathway from slavery to freedom".*(275) His education would give him the mental freedom to then gain physical freedom. He became literate by bribing and befriending the neighborhood boys that lived around him. Every chance Douglass had, he would find another way to gain more knowledge to learn to read.
Instead of convincing American citizens from around the country that slavery was America’s largest injustice, he now was persuading people in the government and people who were originally for anti-slavery, that black men should have equal citizenship and the right to vote. His change in audience is another reason that the abolitionist's voice changed beginning in the mid 1860’s. The harsh and passionate rhetoric he was using to condemn slavery may have not been so effective or persuasive to politicians. Therefore it was in his best interest to change the approach he originally was making. A great example of this is Frederick Douglass’s first meeting with President Andrew
The Communist Manifesto was published in 1848, a period of political turmoil in Europe. Its meaning in today’s capitalistic world is a very controversial issue. Some people, such as the American government, consider socialism taboo and thus disregard the manifesto. They believe that capitalism, and the world itself, has changed greatly from the one Marx was describing in the Manifesto and, therefore, that Marx’s ideas cannot be used to comprehend today’s economy. Others find that the Manifesto highlights issues that are still problematic today. Marx’s predicative notions in the Communist Manifesto are the key to understanding modern day capitalism.
Fredrick Douglass was an American slave in the 1800’s, who the led to the path that knowledge is power and as an individual, a person can achieve anything they want if they put their mind to it. As a result, Douglass proved that knowledge at that time would eventually equal freedom, not only did he use that to his advantage but also started up Sunday school to teach his fellow slaves to spread the word that knowledge equals freedom. The major historical theme that was shown in this book and implemented throughout was freedom. It showed that anyone can obtain the freedom they want when they think for themselves and reach out to further their education. This belief was one of the key reasons the founding fathers of the United States based their
This excellent biography fluently tells the life story of Douglass; one of the 19th centuries's most famous writers and speakers on abolitionist and human rights causes. It traces his life from his birth as a slave in Maryland, through his self-education, escape to freedom, and subsequent lionization as a renowned orator in England and the United States. Fascinating, too, are accounts of the era's politics, such as the racist views held by some abolitionist leaders and the ways in which many policies made in post-Civil War times have worked to the detriment of today's civil rights movement. The chapter on Frederick Douglass and John Brown is, in itself, interesting enough to commend this powerful biography. The seldom-seen photographs, the careful chapter notes, documentation, and acknowledgements will encourage anybody to keep on learning about Frederick Douglass.
To conclude, Frederick Douglass’s determination is admirable because he never ceased to defend the rights, freedom and equality of himself and others. He fought throughout his entire life, and in the end he was able to see the results of his life’s work. Through his effort, he was able to change the lives of the American people and history. Revolutionaries like Frederick Douglass who did not conform to are the kind of people that this world needs more of today. who create an impact and change in the world because they fight for what really matters, rather than settling and waiting for others to do the
When first introduced to Douglass and his story, we find him to be a young slave boy filled with information about those around him. Not only does he speak from the view point of an observer, but he speaks of many typical stereotypes in the slave life. At this point in his life, Frederick is inexperienced and knows nothing of the pleasures of things such as reading, writing, or even the rights everyone should be entitled to. Douglass knowing hardly anything of his family, their whereabouts, or his background, seems to be equivalent to the many other slaves at the time. As a child Frederick Douglass sees the injustices around him and observes them, yet as the story continues we begin to see a change.