Category: Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass: A Catalyst for Abolition and the Battle Against Injustice

Introduction: Challenging the Legacy of Slavery

I’ve been against slavery since my father was an abolitionist in the early 1800s and 1800s. He used to tell me stories of Gabriel Prosser, who almost led the biggest slave revolt that the South had seen, had two slaves not spoiled the plot. Everyone has the right to be free and do whatever it is that they want with their life. Owning another person is immoral, and the only place left in the world with slaves is the United States. In Massachusetts, we never needed any slaves to make a living, so why should they be in the South? Slaves in the South long to be free men and women but are too afraid to say anything, fearing the repercussions if the plantation owner finds out. Frederick Douglass’s story really struck me and showed me what slavery truly was: an abominable institution with too many fallacies to count. Slavery should be abolished because getting rich from slave labor is wrong, but so is the idea of owning another person.

Frederick Douglass: A Journey from Bondage to Inspiration

Frederick Douglass was born a slave but became a free man. He did not know his exact age or his father. All he knows is his father was a white man. His struggle inspired many slaves in the South to try to do the same as he did. Douglass was an incredibly smart man who knew that slavery was wrong (as most slaves did) but also learned how to read and write. Something that most slaves could not dream of but never actually achieve. Slave owner’sowner’s main goal is to keep slaves stupid when they are on the plantation. When you take away someone’s ability to be literate, it makes them simple. This way, the likelihood of a rebellion was way smaller. Frederick Douglass is the reason that they would have nightmares. Douglass was named a problem slave early in his life. After he was transported from Annapolis to Baltimore when he was seven or eight, his new master, the Aulds, showed him a strange kindness. Mrs. Auld, the overseer’s overseer’s wife, started to teach him small words and the alphabet when Douglass came to the new plantation.

She also would not punish him for looking her in the eye. After a while, slavery had corrupted her, a once decent woman who was not tainted by the norms of slavery. Mr. Auld explained to her that teaching slaves was dangerous, fearing them having any thoughts of their own. When Douglas hears this, he instinctively knows that slavery is evil, but he still does not know exactly how it works. The point is that the abolition of slavery should be effective immediately because not only does it have an effect on the slaves, but the owners as well, who keep getting harsher. People who are innocent can easily become corrupted by the evils of slavery. Douglass also recalls other horrible tragedies that he had witnessed during his time as a slave.

Douglass considered his start of being a slave when Aunt Hester was whipped by Captain Anthony. This was the first time that he was initiated into the horrors of slavery. Abolishment of slavery is crucial as no one should have to go through what Douglass did. When he saw Aunt Hester get whipped, he realized that slavery does not only control people physically but mentally, too. This is why slave owners liked to keep slaves uneducated. The psychological torment that these people had to go through was truly horrifying. Douglass says that slaves would argue with one another over whose master was nicer than the other. They would argue whether or not their master was nice at all. While life was truly horrible for most slaves, they were too afraid to speak out. When people would ask them if they were happy with their life, they would say “”yes”” out of the fear that the masters would imbue into them.

Unmasking the Atrocities: Douglass’ Revelation of Slavery’s Psychological Torture

The next half of Douglas’Douglas’ life inspired me to become an abolitionist. After Douglass read “”The Columbian Orator,”” he started to become an abolitionist. He had heard this word being used before, but he was not sure what it meant. The Columbian Orator was about a master and slave and their dialogue together. The slave was making an argument that slavery was wrong, and the master was arguing that it was okay. In the end, the slave refuted all the points of the master, and eventually, the master let the slave go. The pure lack of inhumanity that slave owners have towards their slaves is another reason I believe that slavery should be abolished immediately. After Douglass was a slave for the Aulds for a few years, he was moved to Edward Covey’s plantation.

There were rumors that Covey was a much harsher master than the Auld’s. In part due to the fact that Mr. Auld had been adopted into slavery rather than born into it. Covey often whipped him for being awkward until, one day, he had enough. Douglass had collapsed from heat exhaustion when Covey had found him and beat him with a plank. The hell that Douglass describes in his autobiography alone should be enough for everyone to support abolition. Douglass’ life mimics so many other slaves who had to endure a life of slavery. The exception to this equation was Douglass. He fled Mr. Auld’s plantation on September 3rd, 1838, through various means that he would not describe in detail. Douglass’ story is very important in getting the message out there that slavery is unethical and dehumanizing. Douglass had pointed something out that had been overlooked before. Masters keep slaves as slaves by keeping them uneducated. It is the most evil thing that they can do to keep them docile.

From 1854 until 1859, there was a war in Kansas. This war was fought by pro-slavery and anti-slavery lobbyists. Under popular sovereignty, the weight of this decision belonged to the states. On both sides of this war, there was much bloodshed, such as the Pottawatomie Massacre that happened in retaliation to an anti-slavery settler being murdered. The struggle between both sides of the settlers was very political. This brings me to my next point, that slavery should be abolished because it is a political hot-button issue. Presidents never dared to talk about it in public because whichever way they decided to lean would significantly impact American history. Kansas was eventually admitted as a free state in 1862. Bleeding Kansas was an important issue to me when I chose to become an abolitionist because it showed how high the tensions were over slavery in America at the time. If slavery had been abolished, there would not have been a small civil war in Kansas.

Conclusion: Embracing the Call for Abolition

I think that what made me most want to be an abolitionist is the autobiography that Douglass wrote because it shed light on slavery in a more personal way than ever before. His real experiences caused many people, including myself, to reach out to him and see slavery for what it truly is. Bleeding Kansas was also really important in my decision to become an abolitionist because it showed how important it was for both sides to have their way. People were massacring each other in Kansas just to have it be a slave state. I think that it is important to abolish slavery and give reparations to the families that have been torn apart due to it. I want to do my part in freeing these men and women who deserve the same rights as everyone else. So please, join me in supporting the abolitionist movement.

Motivation and Willpower of Frederick Douglass, Sherman Alexie, and Malcolm X

Introduction:

People often face educational problems, whether it’s a social problem or a learning disability. Something is always on our way of getting the knowledge and education. It could be our friends, family, the environment around us, or finances. Some people give up trying to educate because they lose their motivation, willpower, or maybe self-esteem. Others like Frederick Douglass, Sherman Alexie, and Malcolm X face the problem and deal with it until the goal is reached. Sherman Alexie was an Indian student. Native Americans had a stereotype of being stupid because nobody was inspired to go against everyone and stand out to be different than others and draw attention! Alexie fought a stereotype against Native Americans who were claimed as students who failed in most aspects of education.

Frederick Douglass was a slave. Teaching blacks back then was constituted an offense. Frederick would listen to people talking and find out new words to educate himself. Watching ship carpenters write single letters on lumber is how he learns to form several letters. He would practice his letters on fences, walls, and the ground around the city. Malcolm X was a dropout who ended up in prison. He educated himself by copying down a dictionary even with the limited light source. Eventually, his vocabulary got better, and he was reading books from the prison library and getting better knowledge. All three authors were educated against the odds by having their motivation, being open-minded, and having willpower.

Motivation as a Driving Force:

Without motivation, there would be no way of advancing in life. Motivation is something that the three authors had in common. It kept them going as humans toward a better future. If they did not have motivation, they would be distracted by many of the challenges they face in life, and it would keep them occupied and scared from learning. Alexie was motivated to go against the odds to prove to everyone that the stereotype of Native Americans was a lie. He was motivated to educate himself to get out of the reservation and to become a writer. Malcolm X could say something, but he could not write it down.

At prison, he met Bimbi, a guy who shocked him with his knowledge. After that power of knowledge, he started to think that he could educate himself in prison since he had a lot of free time. It was a big motivation to be knowledgeable. Once started to write down all the words from the dictionary with meanings. He realized that there are so many words that exist. Frederick Douglass was motivated to read by hearing his master expressing himself about the education of slaves. His master told him that an education would benefit him and unfit him as a slave. He believed that if a slave can read and write, then the slave is unmanageable. Douglass discovered that the white man’s power against a slave was in his literacy and education. That motivated Douglass to educate himself against the odds of slavery and to set himself free.

The Role of Open-Mindedness:

Open-mindedness is what allows us to educate ourselves. If one doesn’t have an open mind, then that person can’t learn simply because there may be a point that contradicts and challenges our beliefs. If we are not open to listening, then we can not pursue proper education. Sherman Alexie was open-minded by choosing another way out. He explored the options of being different and saving her life. Alexie showed us that other option and proved that it is possible for people to succeed even when they are told otherwise. Frederick Douglass defeated ignorance and opened his mind up to great treasures of knowledge that could set him free. While Malcolm X was in prison, he opened his mind to the horror of people who have bigger struggles to educate themselves. People with disabilities who are blind or deaf or, back then, people who were slaves. He opened his mind, and he saw the treasure that a lot of people wish to have is the opportunity for education.

The Power of Willpower:

Willpower is the determination that drives us to do what we want. Without willpower, one can not learn to get an education because it will not be in a person’s field of interest. All three authors had the willpower to educate themselves against the odds, fighting slavery and stereotypes and understanding a benefit they have. If none of them had at least some willpower, then none of them would have made it where they are now. It helped them survive; it helped them fight, and it gave them a future.

Inspiring Others Through Triumph:

Frederick Douglass, Sherman Alexie, and Malcolm X are amazing people. They had motivation, they were open-minded, and they had willpower. All these qualities gave them a future and gave us an opportunity to be inspired by them. They fought the odds of education not only for themselves but also for us. Douglass showed us that you can set yourself free by using education. Alexie told us that you can beat a stereotype. Malcolm X showed us the beauty and treasure of education and knowledge. All three authors are trying to motivate us for the future, open our minds to options and opportunities, but also show us the will that others suffer for.

References:

1. Douglass, F. (1845). Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. Retrieved from Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/23
2. X, M., & Haley, A. (1965). The Autobiography of Malcolm X. Grove Press.
3. Alexie, S. (2007). The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

Resisting Slavery: Frederick Douglass and Nat Turner’s Paths to Awareness

Slave Narratives: Shedding Light on Struggles

Slave narratives helped bring light and awareness of the struggles slaves faced in the 1800’s. These narratives allowed modern readers to experience the African-American struggle for freedom from their slave masters in the South. Two great slave narratives were the autobiographical novel Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas by Frederick Douglas and Nat Turner’s confession “T’was My Object to Carry Terror and Devastation Wherever We Went. Frederick Douglas and Nat Turner were both born slaves in the early 1800s whose legacy will be remembered forever. Nat Turner and Fredrick Douglas earned fame for two separate reasons. They were both blessed with the gift of a beautiful mind and the power and ability to resist slavery. They resisted slavery in ways that a majority of slaves feared. Although they both share similar beliefs on the immoral acts of slavery, they took different routes to bring awareness to the cruelty of slavery.

The Legacies of Frederick Douglass and Nat Turner

The autobiographical novel Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas by Frederick Douglas is a novel depicting the life of the author. Douglas used his knowledge and education to his advantage by using his faith in Southern Christianity to help gain freedom from slavery. Douglas was a slave to the Hugh Auld household; while there, he utilized and engulfed himself with literary empowerment and took great risks to continue gaining more knowledge. He continued to learn to read and write. The imagery, combined with Douglas’ views on religion’s role in the enslavement of black people, paints a story that can be compared to the views of Nat Turner.

The Power of Resistance: Douglas and Turner’s Shared Beliefs

Douglas and Turner also shared the same belief, in my opinion, in the pursuit of authority. The idea that no human should be allowed to own another human being. They were both considered useless as slaves because of their ability to read and write. This was portrayed when Douglass was sent to live with Edward Covey to be “broken” into a slave. This initially worked until Douglass fought back against Covey. After a two-hour fight, Convey never put his hands on Douglas again. Turner, on the other hand, was told his uncommon intelligence deemed him useless as a slave; he still became a slave in his adult years. This was a turning point where he realized his purpose was larger than being a slave. After running away from his master, he returned after 30 days. He remembered all his visions as a child and believed the Holy Spirit visited him and told him to return to his “earthly master.”

Different Paths of Resistance: Douglass and Turner’s Approaches

In contrast to Douglass’s narrative “T’was My Object to Carry Terror and Devastation Wherever We Went,” Nat Turner’s “Confesses,” Virginia, 1831, was a confession Turner made in jail after killing slave owners. Nat Turner led one of the greatest slave revolts in the history of slavery. Turner uses scriptural and biblical knowledge to justify his actions. He, in a sense, played “God”. He believed he was following the orders of the Holy Spirit. Nat Turner was an uncommon child. He was born with birthmarks and had visions of acts that happened before his lifetime. He was never taught how to read like Douglas; it was believed he was born with the ability. When he would cry, they would give him a book, and he would essentially teach himself how to read and write.

I believe Douglas’s intended audience was anyone he could inform why slavery was immorally wrong and inhuman. Turner’s narrative, however, was made for an audience to understand why he led the rebellion and murdered his slave-owners. Douglass’s message was more widespread than Turner’s message. I think Douglass’s message was more important as well because he wanted the reader to think about what it takes for the human spirit to be free rather than just thinking about the legal, historical, and political issues of slavery and freedom. Turner’s narrative was a message that shined light on his holy spirit, giving him the power and the understanding of why the world should not continue with slavery.

References:

1. Douglass, Frederick. (1845). “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave.” Retrieved from Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/23
2. Turner, Nat. (1831). “Confessions of Nat Turner.” Retrieved from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: https://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/turner/turner.html
3. Roediger, D. R., & Franklin, V. P. (Eds.). (1998). “Black on White: Black Writers on What It Means to Be White.” Random House.
4. Genovese, E. D. (1979). “From Rebellion to Revolution: Afro-American Slave Revolts in the Making of the Modern World.” LSU Press.
5. Blassingame, J. W. (1972). “The Slave Community: Plantation Life in the Antebellum South.” Oxford University Press.
6. Osofsky, G. (1971). “Puttin’ on Ole Massa: The Slave Narratives as Folklore.” Journal of American Folklore, 84(332), 313-328.

Self-Reliance and Slavery in the Works of Frederick Douglass and Emerson

Frederick Douglass and Self-Reliance

They also have a right to be helped, for they have helped themselves. Only who is able to stand alone is qualified to be a citizen. Even though Emerson treated this as a low priority instead of a high priority, he just did not have any respect for the government during that time. Massachusetts, in its heroic days, had no government and was anarchy. He did not believe in moral suasion; he believed in putting things through.

Abandonment of Self-Reliance: Emerson and Anti-Slavery

George Kateb did not take Emerson’s anti-slavery activities seriously but saw them as the abandonment of self-reliance, suspension of individualism in favor of mobilization, military discipline, and eventually conscripted self-sacrifice. Emerson’s philosophy is self-reliant thinking, a willingness to suspend all authorities and fixed intellectual positions and simultaneously entertain multiple and conflicting moral perspectives without choosing among them. Douglass felt that by far, the larger part of the slaves know as little of their ages as horses know of theirs, and it is the wish of most masters within my knowledge to keep their slaves, thus, ignorant. Douglass stated that he did not remember to have ever met a slave. Douglass asked who could tell of his/her birthday.

They seldom come nearer to it than planting-time, harvest-time, cherry time, spring-time, or fall-time. Douglass stated that the master is frequently compelled to sell this class of his slaves out of deference to the feelings his white wife, and, cruel as the deed may strike anyone to be, for a man to sell his children to human flesh-mongers, it is often the dictate of humanity for him to do so, for unless he does this, he must not only whip them himself, but must stand by and see one white son tie up his brother, of but few shades darker complexion than himself, and play the gory lash to his naked back; and if he lisps one word of disapproval, it is set down to his parental partiality and only makes a bad matter worse, both for himself and the slaves whom he would protect and defend.

Self-Trust and Consistency: Emerson’s Paradox

Emerson stated in “Self-Reliance” that men do what is called a good action as some piece of courage or charity, much as they would pay a fine in expiation of daily non-appearance on parade. Their works are done as an apology or extenuation of their living in the world as invalids. The insane pay a high board. It is harder because you will always find those who think they know what your duty is better than you know it. It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion. It is easy in solitude to live after ours, but the great man is he who, in the midst of the crowd, keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude. The other terror that scares us from self-trust is our consistency, a reverence for one past act or word, because the eyes of others have no other data for computing our orbit than our past acts, and we are loth to disappoint them. But why should you keep your head over your shoulder? Why drag about this corpse of your memory, lest you contradict somewhat what you have stated in this or that public place? I suppose no man can violate his nature. All the sallies of his will are rounded in by the law of his being, as the inequalities of Andes and Himmaleh are insignificant in the curve of the sphere.

Beyond Conformity: Douglass’s Struggle for Identity

Emerson stated that ordinarily, everybody in society reminds us of someone else or of some other person. Character and body in society remind you of nothing else; it takes the place of the whole creation. The man reality reminds you of nothing else; it takes the place of the whole creation. The man must be so much that he must make all circumstances indifferent. The man in the street finding no worth in himself, which corresponds to the force that built a tower or sculptured a marble god, feels poor when he looks at these. To him, a palace, a statue, or a costly book has an alien and forbidding air, much like a gay equipage, and seems to say like that, “Who are you, Sir?”

This one fact the world hates is that the soul becomes one that forever degrades the past, turns all riches to poverty, all reputation to shame confounds the saint with the rogue, and shoves Jesus and Judas equally aside. Man does not stand in awe of man, nor is his genius admonished to stay at home, to put itself in communication with the internal ocean, but it goes aboard to beg a cup of water from the urns of other men. We must go alone. I like the silent church before the service begins better than any preaching.  Douglass stated that he often found himself regretting his existence and wishing that he was dead, but for the hope of being free, I have no doubt that he should have killed himself or done something for which he should have been killed.

References:

1. Emerson, R. W. (1995). Selected Essays, Lectures, and Poems. Bantam Classics.
2. Kateb, G. (2002). Emerson and Self-Reliance. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
3. Perkins, G. (2009). The American Tradition in Literature, Volume 1: Colonial Period Through Whitman. McGraw-Hill Education.

Empowerment through Knowledge: Frederick Douglass’ Journey to Freedom

Frederick Douglass: A Voice Against Hegemony

Frederick Douglass was an influential man and an abolitionist in the nineteenth century. He told his audience his story and the difficulty of being an enslaved man during the eighteen hundreds. In his book My Bondage and My Freedom, he explains to his audience what slavery was like firsthand by reliving the unforgettable moments in his life. His recounting of his experience as a slave and his reflections on his role as a black former slave in America help illustrate the meaning of Gramsci’s critique of hegemony and DuBois ideology of double consciousness.

Unveiling Hegemony through Douglass’ Experiences’

Hegemony is the political or economic predominance or control of one state over others. In the nineteenth century, hegemony came to describe the social or cultural predominance of one group over other groups. Antonio Gramsci’s idea of hegemony was that the ruling class could manipulate the value system and mores of society so that their views become the views of the world. In other words, hegemony is the social, cultural, ideological, or economic influence exerted by a dominant group. In order for hegemony to function, consent must be given; however, if hegemony fails, coercion is in play. Slavery plays by the rules of hegemony, and for Douglass, in My Bondage and My Freedom, both outcomes of hegemony, consent, and coercion take place.

Frederick Douglass was born into slavery in Maryland as Frederick Bailey approximately in 1818. Douglass served as a slave on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and in Baltimore throughout his youth. In Baltimore, especially, Douglass enjoyed relatively more freedom than slaves usually did in the South. At the age of eight, he started to educate himself with the help of his master’s wife, Mrs. Auld. Mrs. Auld’s instructions come to a conclusion as soon as Hugh Auld finds his wife teaching Douglass the alphabet. “Master Hugh was amazed at the simplicity of his spouse, and, probably for the first time, he unfolded to her the true philosophy of slavery and the peculiar rules necessary to be observed by masters and mistresses in the management of their human chattels” (Douglass, p. 113).

Mr. Auld forbids her instructions and tells her, “that the thing itself was unlawful; that it was also unsafe, and could only lead to mischief” (Douglass, p. 113) Mr. Auld continues speaking and soon unveils the secret to freedom, “he should know nothing but the will of his master, and learn to obey it.’ ‘if you teach that nigger—speaking of myself—how to read the bible, there will be no keeping him;’ ‘it would forever unfit him for the duties of a slave.”

Douglass’s narrative at this point shows how slaveholders maintained slavery. By keeping their enslaved men and women ignorant, white slaveholders did not have to worry about their rebellion. Around the time Douglass began writing, people believed slavery was completely normal and thought nothing wrong with it. They believed that blacks did not have the capability to participate in society and thus should be kept under the control of the whites. Slaveholders did not keep track of any slave’s basic information about themselves, such as their birth certificates or parental documentation.

This enforced ignorance robs children of their natural sense of individual identity. As slave children grow older, slave owners prevent them from learning how to read and write, as literacy would give them a sense of self-sufficiency and capability. Slaveholders understood the importance of literacy and how it would lead slaves to question their rights and the rights of whites to keep slaves. However, by keeping slaves illiterate, slaveholders could quiet slaves and keep the rest of America in the dark. If slaves could never learn to write, their life experiences as a slave would never be known.

Empowerment through Knowledge: Frederick Douglass’ Journey to Freedom

Just as slaveholders enslave both men and women by denying them the possession of both knowledge and education, slaves become free once they obtain knowledge and education. Douglass learns the importance of knowledge and how it can be the path to freedom from Hugh Auld and his wife after Mr. Auld forbids his wife from teaching Douglass to read and write. Without Auld noticing, he confesses to Douglass indirectly the secret as to how slaveholders manage to keep slavery in order and how slaves can free themselves. Douglass understands that his education is the primary means by which he can become a freedman and use his education as a tool to bring freedom to all slaves.

Abolitionist Advocate: Frederick Douglass’ Transformation and Activism

In 1838, Douglass fled to the North and towards the state of New York where he soon became a member of the antislavery movement or the abolitionist movement. While in New York, Douglass encounters Anna Muray, a free black woman from Baltimore, and marries her. Both felt uneasy about Douglass being a fugitive and settled further to the North in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where Douglass changed his last name from Bailey to Douglass. For three years, Douglass worked as a laborer and continued his self-education. In the early 1840s, the abolitionist movement was gaining power. In Massachusetts, Douglass began to read the Liberator, the abolitionist newspaper written by William Lloyd Garrison. In 1841, Douglass attended an abolitionist meeting in Nantucket, Massachusetts, where he met Garrison and was encouraged to tell the crowd about his experiences as a slave. Douglass’s spoken account was so well‑received that Garrison offered to employ him as an abolitionist speaker for the American Antislavery Society.

Between the years of 1841 and 1845, Douglass traveled with Garrison throughout the Northern freed states, speaking basically every single day on the cruelty and corruption of slavery. Douglass was oftentimes charged with lying and not telling a true story. Many did not believe that such an articulate and insightful person had escaped from slavery. “They said I did not talk like a slave, look like a slave, nor act like a slave, and that they believed I had never been south of Mason and Dixon’s line” (Douglass, p. 282). Douglass’s use of real names and places demonstrated the truth to those who questioned the honesty of his experience as a former slave. However, the use of real names forced Douglass to flee from the United States as his former slave owner was legally entitled to track him down and bring him back to his duties. Douglass spent the next few years traveling Europe, where he was kindly accepted. Douglass was not able to return to the United States until two of his English friends purchased his freedom.

As a young man, Douglass had no idea that knowledge was the key to rendering slaves free. Slaveholders kept them away from knowledge because they understood it was the only way slaves could articulate the injustice of slavery to all of America and help prove that they had rights as men. Freedom was not provided immediately, as Hugh Auld had predicted; suffering was the result of this awakened consciousness. Every slave would be bound to feel hate towards their masters but would not be able to become free until they met coercion.

Slaveholders’ Corruption and Its Societal Impact

Slavery was not only harmful to slaves themselves but to slaveholders as well. The idea of white hegemony was a corrupt and irresponsible power that slaveholders enjoyed and could only harm their own moral health. With this claim, Douglass is inhumane and unnatural for everyone involved. Throughout his book, he recounts how many slaveholders were tempted to adultery and rape, becoming fathers to their enslaved children. The child born to a slave mother shall be enslaved no matter the condition of the father. Slaveholders simply used pregnancy to multiply their workforce.

Slaveholders simply wanted to expand their productive labor minus the idea of having to compensate via paid wages. Thomas Auld, on the other hand, slaveholders used their religious sense to blind themselves from the sins they committed. Douglass’s main illustration of the corruption of slave owners is Sophia Auld. The irresponsible power of slaveholding transforms Sophia from an idealistic woman to a demon. “Slavery can change a saint into a sinner and an angel into a demon” (Douglass, p. 111). By showing the detrimental effects of slaveholding on Sophia Auld, Douglass implies that slavery should be outlawed for the greater good of all society.

DuBois ideology of double consciousness, or the perception one has of oneself and the perception one has of others, plays a huge role in the development and understanding of My Bondage and My Freedom. According to DuBois,

the Negro is a sort of seventh son, born with a veil and gifted with second sight in this American world — a world which yields him no true self-consciousness but only lets him see himself through the revelation of the other world. It is a peculiar sensation, this double consciousness, this sense of always looking at one’s self through the eyes of others, of measuring one’s soul by the tape of a world that looks on in amused contempt and pity. One ever feels his two-ness — an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body.

In this quoted passage, there are two types of “double consciousness”: the first, which arises from the sense of “always looking at oneself through the eyes of others,” seems astonished appropriate when used as a matrix for understanding Douglass’s career from 1847 onward; however, it is the second formulation, which describes the African-American as “two souls… warring ideals in one dark body,” goes to describe how the idea of slavery was formed. To describe this more, before African Americans were turned to slavery, slave owners had to erase their culture and their identity and reconstruct them to suit slavery. This new identity depended on the culture of an American or white man.

In conclusion, Gramsci’s critique of hegemony and DuBois ideology of double consciousness is portrayed through Douglass’s experience as a slave and his reflections on his role as a black former slave. Hugh Auld reinforces the idea that the ignorance of slaves and their lack of education is the only form in which slavery is still intact. If a slave were to become educated and learn to both read and write, the secrets of slavery and the mistreatment of slave owners would turn the rest of America against them. The Declaration of Independence would have no meaning and make America a hypocrite. However, Douglass, in secrecy, learns to read and write by being self-educated and runs away to the North. He gained his freedom with the help of English friends and became a national leader of the abolitionist movement. Douglass’s double consciousness and his experience as an enslaved man and a freedman helped him change America.

References:

1. Douglass, Frederick. “My Bondage and My Freedom.”
2. DuBois, W.E.B. “The Souls of Black Folk.”