Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: The Original 1845 Edition (The Autobiography Classics Of Frederick Douglass)

Orphaned as a young child, Frederick Douglass, the African-American slave, endured overwork, whippings, beatings, prison, brutal and bloodthirsty masters, and additional shocking events. The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass tells in intriguing detail his journey from an illiterate slave to being freed, and becoming a gifted and distinguished author, is one that will have you one moment crying tears of anger and sadness, and the next, tears of joy at his numerous victories. Mr. Douglass fills your mind with vivid descriptions of the hardships and lives of slaves living in the south during the 19th century. This compelling narrative reads like a novel and is a must-read. My only complaint is that he did not give any details about his escape from slavery so that slaveholders would not be prepared to stop slaves from escaping using that method that Frederick used. This makes sense, but it is still a little anti-climatic.

A bite-sized book that is SO well written even for someone that DIDN'T teach himself to read and write...except Douglas did. A page-turner and so noble. at a young age Frederick Douglas' master's wife endeavored to teach him to read (something that was forbidden in most homes) and his master caught them and chewed out his wife in Douglas' presence "You can't teach a slave to read! He becomes unmanageable with all those lofty ideas in his head - becomes unfit to do a slave's work!" And young Douglas reasoned, "if learning makes one unfit to be a slave, then I must learn to read." And so he did, as well as escape to the North to live to use his self-taught skills to tell his story. I highly recommend this short, beautiful, powerful book.

There are others books available that dive deeper into the details of his life. Frederick Douglass was a witty, thought provoking man who had a life few others experienced in that time period. The book is well written. It's certainly a page turner.

Good read. It took me a little less than 2 weeks to read this book. I only read it on the train to and from work so when I did finish it I had mixed feelings. I wanted to know more about his life once he was finally in the free state. He didn't explain how he navigated through the slave states to reach his final destination. He gave his reasons. Understandable for the time which was before emancipation but I was still curious and looking forward to reading about that. Also at the end he says he sent for his wife...She wasn't mentioned throughout the entire book then she pops up. Where and when did they meet? I'm really nip picking but overall a very good read. I definitely took advantage of the dictionary that was available on Kindle Unlimited. This guys vocabulary was crazy also some words we just don't use in today's world. Looking for another book to get lost in.

Written fairly soon after his escape from slavery, "Narrative" throbs with anger and pain but also manages to be calmly analytical. In that regard it's a masterful piece of work, both as a memoir and as a broad denunciation of slavery. Looking at "Narrative" as an original source in history, what most struck me was how he brought home the barbarity of slavery. Historical accounts and "Uncle Tom's Cabin" don't have near the impact of Douglass' eyewitness accounts.

This is a very spirited story. The passion for freedom that slavery causes is very clear in these pages. Frederick Douglass improves himself more and dared far greater than I have in my life or most others I know. It is easy to take my freedom for granted, and be lackadaisical about my life and how my time is spent. But after reading this autobiography I can see the passion and fervor missing in my life. What is interesting is that slavery enslaves the slave owners even more than the slaves. It not only corrupts their moral character, but it also makes them lazy in mind and self improvement. The very qualities the slavers try to instill in the slaves to keep them bound. Once in the north, Frederick shows that all the working people without slaves are much more wealthy. Those without slaves in the south are very poor, showing that slavery also damaged even the morals of those without slaves. These same tendencies are evident with the hitech generation. The removal of work has to some degree improvised our ability to better ourselves.

Needed it for school the next week, came in two days. Great quality paper. Interesting history book as well.

In these dark times of America still struggling with it's history of racism and bigotry, I decided to go back and read works from the likes of W.E.B. Dubois, Frederick Douglass, Marcus Garvey to name a few. I'm so glad I did! I'm in the process of re-educating myself outside of the confines of what the school system would have me know and it's been liberating. Like Douglass, I feel an awakening within me not unlike when he first learned to read and write. #WOKE

One of the best books i have ever read

Diese Darstellung einer wahren Begebenheit ist fesseld und ernüchternd zugleich. Wer Interesse an historischer amerikanischer Literatur in bezug auf Sklaverei hat wird dieses Buch sehr mögen vor allem in Bezug auf den Vergleich zu "Incidence in the life of a slave girl".

Imagine Gandhi, Darwin, Gates or even yourself being made to cut corn, grovel and never being allowed to read a book. This man was amazing. I've read his other books too (read them!). He opens up the past through his words in a way that lets you see the horrors of slavery without giving you nightmares for the rest of your life. Anyone who reads this will marvel at the man's intelligence and his resilience. If he were born today I wonder what he'd have become. This shows the sad and awful waste of humanity that slavery was, not only to each poor individual trapped in it's disgusting web but also to society as a whole.

Amazing story of a man who had a dream and determination and learned to read and write by his own to come out of slavery. Truly inspirational, there is no dearth of opportunities for those who are determined.

Très accessible et un premier aperçu saisissant de cette situation infamante. Pour tous ceux qui essaient de comprendre comment l'esclavage a pu prospérer pendant des siècles.