Diction In The Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass

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Born in the south in 1818, Frederick Douglass was destined to life as a slave. As a young child, Douglass had to witness brutal mistreatment of fellow slaves, and even endure the punishment himself as he got older. Despite the obstacle of slavery in his life, he managed to escape his fate and travel to the north. There, he was able to attain in education in the field of literacy and language. Despite his escape to the north, slavery still engulfed the nation, a fact Douglass wanted to bring attention to and change. Thus, in 1845 using his newfound education of literacy powers, he turned his tortured memories of being a slave into a book, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. The title itself was an explanation of the book, as he …show more content…

In describing his newfound freedom in the north towards the end of the book, he recalls his hatred towards his past owners. He practically name-calls them, describing them as, "...money loving kidnappers..." and, "...hungry lions..." (Pg. 136). His use of strong diction towards his owners portray his anger still seated in him. The aggressive language is used to characterize to the readers how heartless and monstrous the slaveholders were, as he believed they wanted to rip apart families with selfish intent. It is obvious Douglass feels a burning sensation of hatred towards his past owners due to the harsh mistreatment of him. By using diction, he is able to project his emotions onto the readers, and inform them of the people who are driven by greed, of the people he called …show more content…

He described his kind treatment of his mistress after suffering a brutal beating from white men. He explains the emotions and actions of his mistress, as she, "...again melted into pity. My puffed out eye and blood-covered face moved her to tears. She took the chair by me, washed the blood from my face, and, with the mothers tenderness, bound up my head, covering the wounded eye with a lean piece of fresh beef" (Pg. 122). His description of the beating is used to show readers the gross mistreatment he had to forgo due to the color of his skin. The beating wasn 't doled out by his master, but instead by other white men who had no regards to his life. Douglass includes this excerpt to not only bring attention to the abuse of slave owners, but also the abuse slaves had to endure by white men. By bringing attention to the abuse he had to suffer, Douglass highlights to the readers the injustice of slavery, and how it changed the moralities of those not even holding a slave. Douglass includes this description to intend to show readers why there needed to be an end to slavery- to save the moralities of those who had not yet been plagued by the institution of

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