In my opinion, the narrative was very well written and it was a great resource when learning about the lives of slaves. Douglass’s Narrative shows how white slaveholders continue slavery by keeping their slaves ignorant. At the time Douglass was writing, many people believed that slavery was a natural state of being. Slave owners keep slaves ignorant of basic facts about themselves, such as their birth date or who their parents were. This ignorance robs children of their natural sense of individual identity.
“Learning to read” of F. Douglass and “Clamorous to learn” of E. Welty are two works using narrating rhetorical strategy. Douglass’s literacy narrative included rich details about his life as a slave to whom reading and writing was forbidden, illegal activity, and he had to use some stratagems to acquire the learning while Welty told of her educational experiences whose is affected by her teachers and parents. The main purpose is to share some of the authors’ learning experiences to the audiences who have interest in autobiography. If the tone in “Learning to read” is seriously thoughtful of unabated anguish of a slave on the process to civil emancipation, “Clamorous to learn” appears in the light of a child’s eyes craving of learning. These works which consist of specific details and examples have been transmitted the engage of my interest and imagination about how one claims their own learning process, especially “Learning to read” of F. Douglass.
The comparison on Booker T. Washington and Frederick Douglass's views on slavery and prejudice are quite similar. They both were black slaves who hoped for a better future for blacks that did not include slavery. They both detested slavery and the prejudice of the whites and believed that everyone was equal. Booker T. Washington's book Up From Slavery is an excellent view of what he went through as a slave and how he views slavery and prejudice. Frederick Douglass also wrote a book "The Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass" which is also a great example of what slaves had to go through every day, confined to slavery.
In My Bondage and My Freedom, Fredrick Douglass argues that slavery had affected everyone. “Slavery was a brutal experience, from the initial capture in Africa, to the Middle Passage, to a degrading life of labor in America.” (Yazawa, 59) The slaves had it worst during slavery because they were the central part of it. They had their human rights taken away, they were worked until there was nothing left of them, and they were severely abused. Slaves had become a fixture that had no decisions, no ambition, and no purpose. (Douglass, 129) The slave system had mistreated the slaves in variety of ways.
Douglass’ determination to learn to read and write came at an early age from his mistress. His mistress was a kind, loving woman who treated Douglass like a human being more so than a slave. She was the reason behind Douglass’ strive to want to learn. His mistress taught Douglass the alphabet and in doing so sparked Douglass flame to learn. She was quickly cut off from teaching Douglass when her husband, Master Hugh, realized what she was doing and forbid her from ever doing so.
This meant that Douglass was on his own to educate himself. However, with these words Douglass finally saw his “pathway from slavery to freedom” (29). Learning suddenly became a way towards freedom because it would give him a sense of right and wrong. He learns the evils of slavery and understands that he doesn’t have to live this way. Douglass now knew the steps he must take in order to become a man of society, not a man of slavery.
Throughout the next several chapters, Douglass describes the conditions in which he and other slaves live. As a slave of Captain Anthony and Colonel Lloyd, Douglass survives on meager rations and is often cold. He witnesses brutal beatings and the murder of a slave, which goes unnoticed by the law or the community at large. Douglass argues against the notion that slaves who sing are content; instead, he likens singing to crying — a way to relieve sorrow. Douglass also draws attention to the false system of values created by slavery, in which allegiance to the slave master is far stronger than an allegiance to other slaves.
Douglass has no “respect” because he is thrown into a world of slavery where he must tolerate the disrespect being shoved at him. It isn’t until his fight with slave-breaker Edward Covey that the beginning stage of “respect” starts to make its way to him. The fight is where I can see Douglass start to transform. He writes "You have seen how a man was made a slave; you shall see how a slave was made a man" (47). Brewton also brings to my attention that Douglass “devotes greater space in his first autobiography to the portrait of Covey than to any other character, black or white.” I think this is because the fight with Covey is a pivotal turning point for Douglass.
Therefore Northup’s book played a great deal in the abolition movement of slavery, because it simply provided an account of the true and complete tragedy of slavery. At a time when slavery was already a pressing moral issue, this narrative provided the spark needed to start the fire within the abolitionists’ movement to fight for the rights to freedom that African-Americans deserved. Not only did African-Americans deserve their freedom, but this narrative also shows that with their freedom slaves were capable of living constructive and prosperous lives, just as the whites. Within the first two chapters of the narrative, Northup is depicted as living a very normal, happy life with his wife, Anne, and his three children. “We always returned home from the performance of these services with money in our pockets; so that, with fiddling, cooking, and farming, we soon found ourselves in the possession of abundance, and, in fact, leading a happy and prosperous life.” (Northup, 24) Northup here shows that free salves had to ability to start a family and provide comfortable living when given the opportunity.
Two men in Miral’s life treat her very well. Both education and natural power are themes that we compare with based on these two novels. Education is very important for women from Middle East countries because it is a good way to change their lives. In Saadawi’s novel, Firdaus was born in and grew up in a poor family in a community of poor families. She did not know about how book was so powerful at the beginning until she moved to her uncle’s house in Cario.