“The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”

A Book that Exposed the American South

Introduction and Thesis

Though one may not realize it, literature has had a huge influence in shaping America into what it is now known. Society has changed, grown, and developed through the words of authors who have so graciously published their ideas whether it be nonfiction stories or eye-opening autobiographies like Frederick Douglass’ “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.” This piece was named one of the “Books That Shaped America” by the Library of Congress for many reasons. Through the telling of his own life story, Douglass created a book that pushed America to fight for the abolishment of slavery with more courage and sympathy than ever before.

About the Author

Frederick Douglass was born on an unknown day of February of 1818 in Maryland. Not knowing his true birthday was because Douglass was born into slavery with his family on Holme Hill Farm. He grew up in the care of his grandmother as he never knew his father, and his mother was a slave on a separate plantation.

Frederick lived with his grandparents at Holme Hill until he was seven. He was then placed at the Wye House where he lived with his siblings and aunt. This plantation is where Douglass befriended a white boy who was the master’s son. Through his friend Daniel Lloyd, Douglass began to build a foundation for which would soon be his legacy. “Understanding and using “‘white’ habits of speech” would serve Frederick well as an adult, when he was speaking to white audiences about the horrors of slavery and the need for abolition” (Tanter).

After the Wye House, Douglass moved around a few more times. Through the years, he began learning to read and write through sneaky tactics. Sophia, a daughter of one of Douglass’ masters, was the first person to teach him to read, though this was looked down upon. This sparked Frederick’s curiosity. By the time he was 15, he had read many more books on his own, including the Bible.

After a few failed escape attempts, Frederick was finally free in 1838 after meeting an already freed black woman with whom he fell in love with, Anna Murray. Frederick’s life took off after he was escaped slavery. He quickly began speaking to crowds about his experiences as a slave, and in 1845 he wrote “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, and American Slave: Written by Himself.” Doing this allowed his story to get out to more of the country. After a long life as a renowned orator, abolitionist, women’s right advocate, and writer, Douglass died February 20, 1895 from a heart attack.

About the Book

“The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass,” published in 1845, was an autobiography written to expose the sinful, cruel acts of slaveholders in the South. This narrative is seen as “Douglass’s best writing” as its “chief strength is its frightening insight into the erotic psychology of slaveholding…” (Bloom). As expected from an autobiography, the plot is Douglass’ life from birth, through slavery, and into freedom. Throughout the book, Douglass leads us through his life explaining different standout moments that truly altered his mind, view of life, and himself (Shmoop Editorial Team). For example, Douglass describes a fight between him and his master Edward Covey when he was around 15. Covey constantly beat his slave until one day, Fredrick fought back. With the help of another slave, Covey was beat down and scared off. Frederick described this incident as only a “partial victory,” though, because he still had to remain a slave of Covey’s for another four months. This was one of the epiphanies that lined the autobiography. “It was the point at which he became a man and determined that he would do what he had to do to become free” (Tanter). Doing just that, Douglass escaped slavery at 20 years old as mentioned earlier. He went on to get married and have children while writing many powerful pieces of literature that encouraged slavery abolitionists to step up.

Frederick Douglass’ writing style is described as plain and simple by many. To get his story and main message across, Douglass made sure not to overcomplicate his sentences through big words or abnormal sentence structures. “In short, it is important to note how Douglass appropriated the dominant literary styles of mid-nineteenth-century American life to articulate his claims on behalf of African-American humanity” (Miller). By using the popular literary styles of the time, Douglass was more easily capable of getting his message out to more people. His style of writing was also greatly influenced by the King James version of the Bible since this was one of the first books he had read.

One driving theme of this autobiography is race. The black color of Douglass’ skin defined how he would live his life. His life was seen as less important due to the fact he was not born white. Douglass carries this theme throughout the whole book as he describes how being black automatically gives him access to much less knowledge of himself and the world. It was things like not knowing his true birthdate, father, or skills like reading that irked him greatly (Delevante). This theme is carried throughout the book as Douglass condemns the race relations that were being upheld in America.

The Legacy

“The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” was and still is so influential due to the fact that it bluntly exposed the truth and hypocrisy of slavery in America while uniting the country in the abolition movement. This “Christian” nation was performing cruel acts not condoned by the Bible at all. Douglass’ narrative exposed this through telling true reason slaveowners feared African Americans learning to read. “Slave owners knew that if slaves learned to read, they would discover that the Bible did not condone their enslavement…” (Tanter). This piece of literature shined light onto the hypocrisy of America’s dominant religion. Doing this allowed many Christians who were not sure if they supported slavery or not to revaluate what the Bible truly says leading them to support the abolitionist movement.

This book also challenged American beliefs just through its whole title “The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, and American Slave: Written by Himself.” This title is significant as it shows how Douglass claimed himself as both and American and a slave. This challenged the idea that slaves were merely Africans brought to America. Like many other slaves, Douglass and his siblings were born in America into the cruel system. “Equally significant is Douglass’s self-identification as an American and a slave also mentioned in the title, simultaneously calling attention to the hypocrisy being practiced in the birthplace of the Declaration of Independence, where human beings were held as chattel, and to his identity and rights as an American citizen” (Samuels). The linking of American and slavery in the title is monumental for it put into view for many of the book’s readers that America was actually enslaving its own people.

This book’s biggest legacy was seen in its effect in the abolitionist movement. After he wrote the book, Douglass moved to Ireland because his life was in danger due to the fact he had revealed so much information about the world of slavery. There he made many friends who read Douglass’ autobiography and felt compelled to help him, so they paid off his past slave owners so that he could truly be a free man (Tanter). This act of kindness caused by the sympathy created from reading the narrative allowed Douglass to move back to America and start his work in the abolitionist movement. This piece of literature was unlike many other slave narratives. “…the reader’s attention is not invited to a work of art, but to a work of FACTS. There is not a fictitious name or place in the whole volume …; every transaction therein described actually transpired” (Stone). Because of the narratives raw, truthful telling of Douglass’ life, it was impactful to so many, like Douglass’ Irish friends for example. Because of this, it helped propel his career as one of the most impactful leaders of the abolition movement. 20 years after his autobiography’s publication, slavery was abolished in America. It is not a stretch to say that this book was one of the biggest factors in gaining support for and pushing the movement along.

This piece of literature’s place in the Library of Congress’ “Books That Shaped America” exhibition was rightfully earned as it truly affected the abolitionist movement. Without this book, the freeing of slaves may have come much later than 1865. As Frederick Douglass once said, “It is not light that we need, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake.” Douglass’ narrative sure did leave a legacy as it brought the storm, whirlwind, and earthquake.

Works Cited

Bloom, Harold. “Bloom on Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.” Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass — Frederick Douglass, Original Edition, Chelsea House, 2018. Bloom’s Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=95547&itemid=WE54&articleId=45332. Accessed 6 Nov. 2020.

Delevante, Patrice Natalie. “Race in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself.” Encyclopedia of Themes in Literature, Facts On File, 2020. Bloom’s Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=95547&itemid=WE54&articleId=38539. Accessed 6 Nov. 2020.

Miller, James A. “Frederick Douglass (1818–1895).” Faculty of Georgetown, faculty.georgetown.edu/bassr/heath/syllabuild/iguide/douglass.html.

Samuels, Wilfred D. “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself.” Encyclopedia of African-American Literature, Second Edition, Facts On File, 2013. Bloom’s Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=95547&itemid=WE54&articleId=27262. Accessed 6 Nov. 2020.

Shmoop Editorial Team. “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass Summary.” Shmoop, Shmoop University, 11 Nov. 2008, www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/life-of-frederick-douglass/summary.

Stone, Albert E. “Identity and Art in Frederick Douglass’s Narrative.” Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass — Frederick Douglass, Original Edition, Chelsea House, 2018. Bloom’s Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=95547&itemid=WE54&articleId=532861. Accessed 6 Nov. 2020.

Tanter, Marcy. “Douglass, Frederick.” Student’s Encyclopedia of Great American Writers, Volume 2, Facts On File, 2010. Bloom’s Literature, online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=95547&itemid=WE54&articleId=475141. Accessed 6 Nov. 2020.