Frederick Douglass’s “Narrative of the Life of a Slave . . .” Questions 17. Desc

Question

Frederick Douglass’s “Narrative of the Life of a Slave . . .” Questions

17. Describe the entire process, starting with his being taught the alphabet by Mrs. Sophia Auld that Frederick Douglass learned/taught himself to read and write.

18. In the “Appendix” to his Narrative of Life of a Slave, what type of Christians does Douglass criticize and accuse of being hypocrites, and why?

19. Frederick Douglass; Leo Tolstoy and Virginia Woolf in the readings of theirs we have studied in class all write about:

     A. Denial of the self

     B. Obstacles to happiness and fulfillment

     C.   Incomplete or imperfect families

     D.   All of the above

Explanation / Answer

Note: This response is in UK English, please paste the response to MS Word and you should be able to spot discrepancies easily. You may elaborate the answer based on personal views or your classwork if necessary.

(Answer) (17) In the narrative, Mrs. Auld teaches Frederick to read just a little bit. She manages to surreptitiously teach him to read and write up to three and four letter words. Perhaps, Frederick needed help with this beginning. However, when they were caught studying by Mr. Auld, things changed. Mr. Auld warned Sophia that is it unlawful and unwise to teach a slave to read and write.

Upon learning about how the white man felt that it was dangerous to give slaves the ultimate weapon of an education, it could just as well be the end of the current framework of society. Frederick then realises how pivotal it is that he learns to read and write, even if he has to do it himself. He learns that the thing that he desires is the very thing that slave owners wouldn’t want him to have – the power of literacy.

Frederick’s hopes to use this weapon against the conformity of slavery in the society is the motivation that drives him towards learning to read and write.

(18) The author describes a typical Christian hypocrite in the similar manner as Jesus describes the ascetic Scribes and Pharisees of his time. Frederick talks about how the Christians talk about freedom and yet they are the ones to encourage slavery. The Christians who dismiss materialism are the ones who manage to hoard for their own gains. Furthermore, Frederick compares the Christians to the way the Jews would treat the proselytes who came to believe in the God of Abraham and follow the Mosaic Law.

Frederick reminisces how the high priests would be prejudiced towards the people who even wanted to love and worship God. He talks about how Jesus said that the high priests do not have a pure belief themselves and neither do they let others come close to God. This is the lens that Frederick uses to compare the Christian authority of his time.   

(19) D – All of the above. In book like “Room of one’s own”, “War and Peace” and “Narrative of a slave,” the protagonist tends to face several obstacles that are used as literary devices for the hero to overcome.

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