Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave Close ...

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave Close Reading Analysis #1 Just as a phoenix rises from ashes--Frederick Douglass--an American slave, escapes the

horrors of slavery and emerges a stronger man. Born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, circa 1818, Frederick Douglass endures prolonged suffering for 20 some odd years under the subordination of brutal masters and overseers before escaping to his freedom in the north. After escaping the shackles of slavery and paving a new path for himself, the devout abolitionist is encouraged to tell his story publicly. In his poignant narrative, the skilled rhetor eloquently recounts his experience as a slave. In chapter VIII of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Douglass uses powerful and emotive rhetoric to reflect on his grandmother's life and death and to convey the message that all slaves, regardless of their servitude, are destined to suffer the same miserable treatment and fate.

Douglass uses the example of his grandmother, Betsy Bailey, to encourage readers to understand just how abhorrent and unjust it is to subject humans to bondage. Betsy Bailey is characterized by Douglass as a "poor old woman" who served her master "faithfully from youth to old age" by "rock[ing] him in infancy, attend[ing] him in childhood, serv[ing] him through life, and at his death wip[ing] from his brow the cold death-sweat." Betsy Bailey demonstrates her loyalty to the one responsible for her captivity throughout the course of her life. Douglass strategically highlights his grandmother's devotion to her masters and details just how involved and dedicated she was to the care of her masters. Her services; however, lead to no reward. Douglass reveals the tender care and attention his grandmother displays would not be reciprocated by her masters. Douglass contrasts the dutiful Betsy Bailey with the "fiendish barbarity" of slave masters who divided her grandchildren and great-grandchildren "like so many sheep." While Betsy Bailey treated those who enslaved her with tender care, her own family was

taken from her. Through his simile, Douglass stresses the fact that slaves are stripped of their humanity, used for the resources they can provide, and like livestock are lined up and sold at auction to the highest bidder. Like so many slaves, Betsy Bailey was deprived of the opportunity to know, love, and care for those who mattered most. Regardless of their servitude, Douglass reminds his audience that all slaves can expect to suffer degradation and humiliation, and be deprived of their humanity and inalienable rights.

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