In Narrative, you get a front row seat to the horrors of this despicable practice, written about by a man who survived to tell the tale. It's one thing to know that slavery existed as an abstract concept, and it's another to read a firsthand account of it. What is Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass About and Why Should I Care?įrederick Douglass's Narrative is about slavery-the despicable practice of owning human beings that was legal in the United States from colonial times through the end of the Civil War.

But it's one of the most important American texts ever written.and if you want to know about one of the most evil chapters in American history, it's an invaluable book to check out.

The world hadn't heard many real-life stories from former slaves, and Douglass' book struck a raw nerve and increased interest in abolition and righteous anger against slavery.ĭouglass would eventually become the best-known abolitionist in the country (and the most famous Black American of his era) because not only does Douglass create a powerful, visceral, and stirring argument against slavery, but asks some hard philosophical questions about what freedom really is. and Europe, and was quickly translated into both French and German. He became a public speaker and writer to try to stop it in its tracks, believing that if he showed people what slavery was really like, they would understand why it needed to be abolished.Īnd who better than a former slave to tell the truth about slavery? So even though Douglass aims to tell us his personal story, he never forgets the larger goal of abolishing slavery.ĭouglass's Narrative was an instant success, selling over thirty-five thousand copies in the U.S. When Douglass wrote this book in 1845, slavery was still legal in much of the United States. Unsurprisingly, Narrative is bit more than an autobiography it's also strong political text.

It's one of the most thrilling, inspiring and powerful autobiographies that's out there. That's right: Douglass fought against the heinous system of slavery and learned how to read and write, fought against the tyranny of amoral masters, and fled to freedom. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Memoir Study Guide Introductionįrederick Douglass 's Narrative is no ordinary autobiography: it's the story of his life from the time he was born a slave to the time of his escape to freedom in the North.

Frederick douglass narrative