Frederick Douglass or Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey as named at birth, was an African American slave during the 19th century. He had many different masters who all forced him to work usually on the farms or boats. Frederick witnessed and received some of most gruesome beatings and shootings of African American slaves. During his time as a slave, Frederick never knew what abolition meant but he continuously fought for the cause especially after gaining his freedom. Fredericks intention for publishing his life story was to fight against the slavery of the south.

Frederick Douglass' felt his first obligation was to expose the treatment of the slaves to the citizens of the Northern states. Douglass' short book of one hundred and twenty one pages shows many times the cruel treatment the slaves received from their masters. One of the most striking examples Frederick gives is when a man ran into the lake to avoid being whipped. "He had given Demby but few stripes, when to get rid of the scourging, he ran and plunged himself into the creek, and stood there at the depth of his shoulders, refusing to come out." The overseer then "raised his musket to his face, taking deadly aim at his standing victim, and in an instant poor Demby was no more." (1) Douglass felt obligated to tell the people of the north of this outrageous treatment and that no legal action was taken against the overseer. Frederick wanted to inform people that this treatment continues every day in the southern states. Fredericks second reason for writing his book was to prove that he was and had been a slave. When people found out that Frederick knew how to read, write and speak eloquently, they questioned if he had ever been a slave. Frederick states that "People doubted if I had ever been a slave." (1) He felt he needed to tell details of his story to legitimize his messages. He was successful in his task giving those included enough information to verify his life story if they chose. Frederick felt it was very important to tell his story even if it meant he had to flee to Europe for a time.

Frederick's story did not just inform the people of the north, it shocked them, Wm. Lloyd Garrison states that these people were "so profoundly ignorant of the nature of slavery". (1) People of the north acknowledged that the southern states had slaves but they did not know how the slaves were being treated. The people of the north were oblivious to the injustice, exposure to outrages and savage barbarity that the southern slaves were facing. They were also not aware of the scourging, mutilations, branding and banishment of knowledge that the slaves were receiving. "When all the rights of the humanity are annihilated, any barrier remains to protect the victim from the fury of the spoiler." The people of the north were not only shocked because of the treatment of the southern slaves, they were also shocked because it was still happening. In other examples, such as stories from the holocaust, the events are over. Frederick was writing with slavery still going on and with African American people still being beaten. Not only does Frederick write about the slaves still in the southern states he expresses his concern for those slaves. "From that time until now, I have been engaged in pleading the cause of my brethren - with what success and with devotion, I leave those acquainted with my labors to decide." (1)

Frederick Douglass' intent when he wrote his life story was to fight against slavery. Douglass continued to fight against slavery for the rest of his life, writing another book, My Bondage And My Freedom, and working with Lincoln to free the slaves. Frederick was the best fit to lead the abolitionists toward freedom of the African Americans. From the years 1842 to 1844 Frederick made speeches and soon started to publish a news paper for the free African Americans of the North. Gregory Stephens states that "it is Douglass, rather than Lincoln, who represents the Republican Party's most inclusive legacy."(1) Frederick was a great leader to the fight against slavery and his efforts would pay off in the end. Frederick not only participated in the fight against slavery, he took part in fighting for womens rights. He had an important role in the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, where they would take the first step in getting women rights. When he started the fight for womens rights he, started to publish stories in his paper with titles such as "Right is of no sex, truth is of no color."(1)

Frederick was very successful with his autobiography fighting against slavery. Fredericks story shocked all who read it at the time and it continues to educate readers, it made people realize that the slaves of the south were being cruelly treated and that something needed to be done about it. The stories Frederick told were gruesome and new to the people of the north. The world of the nineteenth century was completely different then our world today. Today if things such as slavery were happening in one part of the world it would be on the news and everyone in the world would know about it. However, this doesn't mean the U.S. does anything to help or change these situations. We need motivations to get involved such as Frederick's book. In the nineteenth century, there was no television or news to inform the people of what was going on. Frederick Douglass took on the task of informing and fighting against slavery and was very successful.


Citations
1) Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass. New York: Signet Classics, 2005.