Frederick Douglass (1818-1895)
Contributing Editor: James A. Miller
Classroom Issues and Strategies
Readers tend to read Douglass's Narrative sympathetically but casually. Although they readily grasp Douglass's critiques of slavery in broad and general terms, they tend to be less attentive to how the narrative is structured, to Douglass's choices of language and incident, and to the ideological/aesthetic underpinnings of these choices.
I find it useful to locate Douglass historically within the context of his relationship to the Garrisonian wing of the abolitionist movement. This requires students to pay more attention to the prefatory material by Wendell Phillips and William Lloyd Garrison than they normally do. I also try to focus their attention on the rhetoric and narrative point of view that Douglass establishes in the first chapter of his Narrative.
Questions students often ask include the following:
How does Frederick Douglass escape?
How does he learn to write so well?
Is Douglass "typical" or "exceptional"?
Why does Anna Murray appear so suddenly at the end of the narrative?
Where is she earlier?
What happens to Douglass after the narrative ends?
Major Themes, Historical Perspectives, and Personal Issues
Paying careful attention to the unfolding of Douglass's consciousness within the context of slavery draws attention to the intersection of personal and historical issues in the Narrative. The movement from slavery to "freedom" is obviously important, as is the particular means by which Douglass achieves his freedom--the role literacy plays in his struggle.
Significant Form, Style, or Artistic Conventions
Douglass's command of the formal principles of oratory and rhetoric should be emphasized, as well as his use of the conventions of both sentimental literature and the rhetoric and symbolism of evangelical Christianity. 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.
Through a careful examination of Douglass's rhetorical appeals, we try to imagine and re-create Douglass's mid-nineteenth-century audience. We try to contrast that audience to the various audiences, black and white, that constitute the reading public in the late twentieth century.
Comparisons, Contrasts, Connections
Jacobs's Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl --for a contrasting view of slavery through a woman's eyes and experiences. Thoreau's Walden --for a view from one of Douglass's contemporaries. Franklin's Autobiography --for another prototype of American autobiography.
Questions for Reading and Discussion/ Approaches to Writing
1. What is the function of the prefatory material? Why does Douglass add an appendix?
2. What is the relationship of literacy to Douglass's quest for freedom? Of violence?
3. What idea of God animates Douglass?
4. How does Douglass attempt to engage the sympathies of his audience?
Gibson, Donald B. "Christianity and Individualism: (Re-)Creation in Frederick Douglass's Representation of Self." African American Review 26 (Winter 1992): 591-603.
Kibbey, Ann. "Language in Slavery: Frederick Douglass' Narrative." Prospects: An Annual of American Cultural Studies 8 (1985): 163-82.
O'Meally, Robert G. "Frederick Douglass's 1845 Narrative: The Text Was Meant To Be Preached." In Afro-American Literature: the Reconstruction of Instruction, edited by Robert B. Stepto and Dexter Fisher. New York: Modern Language Association, 1978.
Sekora, John. "Comprehending Slavery: Language and Personal History in Douglass' Narrative of 1845." College Language Association Journal 29 (1985): 157-70.
Smith, Stephanie A. "Heart Attack: Frederick Douglass's Strategic Sentimentality." Criticism 34 (Spring 1992): 193-216.
Stepto, Robert B. "Narration, Authentication and Authorial Control in Frederick Douglass' Narrative of 1845." In Afro-American Literature: the Reconstruction of Instruction, edited by Robert B. Stepto and Dexter Fisher. New York: Modern Language Association, 1978.
Stone, Albert C. "Identity and Art in Frederick Douglass' Narrative." College Language Association Journal 17 (1973): 192-213.
Sundquist, Eric J. "Slavery, Revolution and the American Renaissance." In The American Renaissance Reconsidered, edited by W. B. Michaels and Donald E. Pease. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1985.