The short narration “Learning how to Read” by Frederick Douglass, tells a story about how Douglass being a young slave hunger to learn how to read. He mentions some of the things he need to do to learn how to read and write. Douglass being nothing but a young slave had an eager to get his education although his master had prohibited him to stop learning Douglass was very smart and brave. In this story he demonstrates to be very confident and very curious but about why his master did not want him to learn how to read and write. But Douglass creative mind urged him to get…
In “Learning to Read” an excerpt from his autobiography, Frederick Douglass writes about the steps he took to learn to read and write. He shows all the steps in this excerpt. He was a slave in a house; he didn’t have any opportunity to go to school or get any educations but the mistress in the house helped him and taught him the alphabet. But then Douglass’s master asked his wife to stop teaching him. She listened to her husband and turns into inhuman, an evil woman, Douglass could not recognize her anymore. Douglass writes, “She finally became even more violent in her opposition than her husband himself” (36). She changed and she became more evil, more violent than the master. But then that didn’t make Douglass stop and stand hopelessly, he found another way to learn. He tricked a kid from his neighborhood and makes that kid teach him how to read and it went well. After that he continued to find more way to learn, and try improving his reading. He found a book named “The Columbian Orator”. He used every opportunity he got try to read this book and learn the words in there. That was the final step that he took to learn to read. Some years later, after he went to a shipyard and saw and board with words, letters, and he wanted to write. He tried to copy the letters from the board. He didn’t stop; he wanted to know more about writing. He found a boy and asked him to teach him write. The boy taught him to write all the alphabet letters. Finally, the last step he took to learn to write was that he took a book and copy all the words in there and try to remember what the words looked like. That was long and not so easy time for him to learn how to read and write but it didn’t stop him from his interest in reading and writing. Even though he didn’t have any opportunity as a slave to have education, he became strong and found any way that could help him to learn. He keep reading and writing until he…
Douglass begins by telling us he was born into slavery in Maryland, his mother’s name was Harriet Bailey, and he was separated from her at birth. He reveals he is not sure how old he is and that his father was a white man rumored to be his first master. He was later sent to Baltimore where his new master’s wife began to teach him to read. His Master Hugh found out and put a stop to it insisting Douglass would become unmanageable and unhappy. When Douglass heard this he realized that the lock on the bonds of slavery was ignorance, and education was his key to freedom. Eventually he succeeded in teaching himself to read and write with help from his white friends. After educating himself he developed a better understanding of slavery and began to regard his enslavers as wicked. When he is sent to be broken by Mr. Covey he is whipped on a regular basis and almost loses hope, but he ends up fighting back regaining confidence in himself. Douglas marks this as a turning point and vows never to be whipped again. Later, Douglass learns the trade of caulking, has a disagreement with his master over wages, attempts another escape and succeeds in reaching New York…
As I read this excerpt by Douglass I learned the important event that Douglass recalls in his life, and the immoral nature of slavery.The important event that Douglass recalls in his life is learning how to read. Douglass was taught how to read by a woman named Lucretia Auld. Douglass compared enslavers to criminals. Douglass said he could regard them in no other light than a band of successful robbers. He compared them to this because the enslavers left their homes,came to Africa and stole homes…
In the article “learning to read and write” by Frederick Douglass, he describes about the challenges that he had when he learned how to read and write. He is an American slave who lived in Master Hugh’s family for seven years. His master’s wife was very kind towards him. She treated him as a human and thought him with some alphabet. But her husband refused her to do so because he did not want Douglass to learn anything.…
When Mrs. Auld began teaching Frederick how to read was Douglass’s first real foray into rebellion. It was illegal to teach a slave how to read and write and after Mr. Auld reprimanded Mrs. Auld, Douglass realized that “to wit, the white man’s power to enslave the black man” (Douglass 20). The seed of rebellion had been planted and he had discovered his path to freedom. He was proud of his new ability and tried to practice it as often as he could by challenging children to writing letters (Douglass 26). Douglass cultivated this new ability and treats it as the reason he was able to become free.…
Slaves encounter tremendous challenges to get literate. Douglass, a young teenage slave, “live in Master Hugh’s family about seven years” (61). He is fortunate to learn the alphabet from his sympathetic mistress at first. However, Mr. Hugh perceives that his wife educates Douglass; then, he forbids his wife from teaching the salve. As a result, Mrs. Huge obeys her husband’s command; she loses her kindness to become a cruel slave owner, and she no longer teaches Douglass to read. As Douglass condemn, “education and slavery were incompatible with other each” (61). Slaveholders teach slaves to read and write, which is disadvantageous to them. When slaves become literate, they can run away to escape from their masters’ control. Therefore, education…
He wrote about his personal experience to reach out to the audience so they can, through his words, see and feel what he went through as a slave. Douglass’s idea of protest was active and peaceful to a certain extent. Douglass made it a point to learn how to read shortly after his mistress was forbidden, by her husband, from continuing teaching Douglass how to read. Douglass. According to Douglass, his master said, “If you give a nigger an inch, he will take an ell” (39). and Douglass did. He would do anything he could to continue his “education”. He went to children and tricked them into teaching him how to read and write. Also, he would sneak a book during any free time he had so that he can practice until he mastered it. With all of his reading, he realized that there was a life outside of being a slave and he was determined that he was not going to be a slave for his entire life, he was one day going to be free. Douglass explains how one day his life changes, “I have already intimidated that my condition was much worse, during that first six months of my stay at Mr. Convey’s, than in the last six. The circumstances leading to the change in Mr. Convey’s course…
In the excerpt “Learning to Read and Write”, Frederick Douglass talks about his experiences in slavery living in his masters house and his struggle to learn how to read and write. Frederick Douglass was an African American social reformer, orator, writer, and statesman. Some of his other writings include “The Heroic Slave”, “My Bondage and My Freedom”, and “Life and Times of Frederick Douglass”. In this excerpt, Frederick Douglass uses an empathic tone, imagery, certain verb choice, contrast, and metaphors to inform African Americans of how important it is to learn to read and write and also to inform a white American audience of the evils of slavery. I find Frederick Douglass to be relatively persuasive in his argument to his intended audiences.…
Douglass himself says in his autobiography, “seized with a determination to learn to read, at any cost, I hit upon many expedients to accomplish the desired end” (500). Although he was a slave, he always found a way to keep learning without letting anyone know. Douglass found many means to keep learning and also keep quiet about how he was doing it. Horn speaking about Douglass says, “In order to attain literacy, Douglass is compelled to resort to indirections’ such as exchanging bread for reading lessons from hungry white children in the streets of Baltimore” (Horn). Douglass was so determined that he probably spent many restless nights learning to read and write, whether sick or in health he kept going. Douglass knew that exchanging bread with the white children of Baltimore would be worth it because he knew that his education has no price. Douglass knows that his education could cost him his life, but still learned even when the society he lived in, didn’t want him to…
Nelson Mandela once said, “ Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” One man who lived up to this quote was abolitionist/orator, Frederick Douglass, Douglass was able to use education as weapon to verbally attack the structures and fight for the abolishment of slavery. Without Douglass being educated then we would not know Frederick Douglass for who he is today. In the narrative Learning to Read and Write the author, Frederick Douglass explains his endeavors to learn how to read and write although he is a slave. After Douglass’s instruction subsequently ended he made multiple attempts to learn how to read and write. As a child, Douglass took the initiative to seek educating himself; he also used his cleverness to gain…
First, Douglass’ enlightenment of learning the alphabet gives him hope to building a stronger literacy for a better life than that of a slave. Then, he improves in his literacy and finds his enlightenment to then feel sad and tormented. For example, Douglass says, “I often found myself regretting my own existence, and wishing myself dead; and but for the hope of being free” (191). On one hand, Douglass…
Even though odds were against him, Douglass continued to pursue a resemblance of an education. Reading “gave tongue to interesting thoughts of my own soul…The moral which I gained from the dialogue was the power of truth…” (Douglass 1199). Douglass wasn't confused when he said knowledge would be the key to his escape from slavery, but he realized that knowledge would be the way to prove slavery as an injustice in society. Resistance is a crucial theme in Douglass’s narrative because this is Douglass’s main crusade: to become a free man and resist slavery. Douglass, like many slaves, endured horrible abuses from their masters. These offenses created an urge of resistance within a beaten Douglass. Douglass’s first form of resistance was the act of learning to read. After learning to read, he had successfully started his quite rebellion. When his will was tested and he was physically abused, he turned his rebellion to a physical resistance. “I resolved to fight; and, suiting my action to the resolution, I seized Covey by the throat,” (Douglass 1214) this act of defiance was a burst of anger from years of inhumane treatment which…
The years of slavery as we all may know, were tough times for African American individuals. The hardships that they endured, physically, mentally and emotionally, can be seen as unimaginable by some of us and can leave us wondering how some of these people made it out alive. During that time, author Frederick Douglas, became a prevalent voice for slaves everywhere. Presenting the truth behind what he endured as a slave and what many other slaves can see as relatable as well. Amongst all truths he was making relevant a the time, Frederick Douglas’ idea of knowledge and education being the unseen path to freedom for slaves, does in fact present itself as a tool of freedom into his own life.…
Douglass knowing that he could no longer be educated by Mrs. Auld, he would look for other methods to teach himself. Douglass’s determination to be educated guided him well. In chapter seven, Douglass shares how he gained an education without a formal teacher. Douglass became friends with local poor white boy’s, who he traded bread with in return of knowledge. Douglass also made use of the child of Mr. Auld, by using his educational books. Mr. Auld was right to fear the education of slaves, it was Douglass’s education which led him to seek freedom from slavery. It was education which caused Douglass the passion to better his mind. It was education which helped Douglass establish a legacy, which presented the harsh reality of being a slave. By taking a slave’s education away, a master can maintain their power other their slave, continuing their suppression. Douglass was born into a world that did not want him to be educated, but his persistence to learn resulted in him gaining both an identity and his own freedom. Education is something that many of us nowadays take for granted, but Douglass demonstrates the true power and importance of knowledge within his…