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Literacy is an important skill in every society because it affects the ability to communicate and reason. The misfortune of being illiterate ensures a spot in the lowest social class, without the possibility of improving one's circumstances.
In the 19th century it was illegal to educate slaves because it kept them ignorant to their rights and injustices. Frederick Douglass wrote a non-fiction autobiography to document his unique experience as an American slave.
In Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American slave, Douglass attains literacy by bribing neighboring children to teach him what they are learning at school.
The education he receives opens his eyes to the cruelty of his masters, and begins his life as an abolitionist. Douglass utilizes an appeal to ethos through his discussion of slaves' illiteracy, and simplistic diction because of his informal education to add credibility to his account.
Slavery had many methods of punishment, and some of the psychological tactics were more horrific than the physical.
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A common form of psychological abuse was denying slaves an education and "reduc to slavery".
Without literacy, Douglass felt as if he was not human, but a Brute. Slaveholders understood the “importance of keeping them in ignorance" (Kohn 2). One of Douglass's masters once said that if blacks are taught to read, "it would forever unfit him to be a slave" (Douglass 41).
Many masters believed that educating their slaves would be a threat to the system, and feared a large-scale slave rebellion. On large plantations in the deep south, the slaves far outnumbered the masters, and a rebellion could be detrimental.
The slaveholders excuse for denying this God given right was because "humanism would undermine the system by strengthening slave's recognition of their own humanity and desire to be free".
After this confrontation with his master, Douglass begins to understand that "literacy, education, and reason are figured as crucial tools in the struggle for emancipation". When Douglass attains his literacy, his master's prediction becomes a reality. The more he learned, "the more was led to abhor and detest [his] enslavers".
He couldn't understand how slaves could be treated so heinously under the law. Slaves could not defend themselves physically or in the judicial system, and essentially had no rights. The things he was learning about slavery were so maddening that he began to question if "learning to read had been a curse rather than a blessing". With the little informal education Douglass managed to find, he built a logical platform for his abhorrence of slavery, that could not be rebutted by the most enthusiastic slaveholder.
Throughout his novel, Douglass uses diction that is "childlike in its simplicity". This is because Douglass received no formal schooling, and subsequently his style of writing is completely self taught, and an “ingenuous revelation of character".
When writing, Douglass doesn't use a developed technique, but instead put his thoughts directly on the page, allowing for an unconcealed observation of his opinions. His style is “calm and modest," but dense with emotion. Douglass demonstrates this skill when discussing the mistreatment of his grandmother.
The slaveholders ingratitude towards his grandmother serves as the reason for his strongest resentment towards them. She had taken care of her master and all his children from infancy to death, and to repay her "they took her to the woods, built her a little hut, put up a little mud-chimney, and then made her welcome to the privilege of supporting herself in perfect loneliness". This information is important to understand that Douglass's writing is genuine, and add credibility to his account.
Frederick Douglass uses a unique simplistic style that makes his novel distinctive from other slaves writing. Many slave novels are surely and fail to convey the purpose of the book. Douglass overcomes this stereotype by using a unique approach of simplicity, and providing original insight on the life of an American slave.
His informal education creates a sense of authenticity, which is one of the reasons for the success of the novel. Douglass's commentary on psychological abuse contradicts the common belief that slaves were only physically tormented.
Denying slaves an education because of their skin color dehumanized them, and was a major factor for why slavery lasted so long in America. Douglass's novel highlights the importance of education, for a slave and for Douglass himself. Without education, Douglass would never have recognized the rights he was being deprived of, or written this novel which contributed to the Civil War that ended slavery in America.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. (2023, May 18). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/narrative-of-the-life-of-frederick-douglass-an-american-slave-essay
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