The Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave Opinion Essay

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

Education and change go hand in hand. This can be confirmed by evidence from various chapters in the book regarding the issue of decision-making. First, it may be pertinent to note that in life, change is inevitable but the crucial thing is to be able to adapt to changes that occur in our daily environment. Change develops us as it challenges the status quo, hones our survival skills and keeps us in tune with the environment around us.

Most of the changes that occur in a person’s life take place due to the circumstances that they survive under. Accordingly, education plays a very important role in the development of a society right from the individual level all the way to the national level. Education helps develop a person’s critical thinking, expand their mental horizons and increase their capacity to innovate and think creatively.

Education helps develop a person’s ambition, and in the process follow their dreams and helps chart a person’s destiny towards self-actualization. Douglass decides that he needs to learn how to read and write, when he hears Mr. Auld telling his wife that reading will help the slaves realize that they can do better in life. He believes that they will be more aware of their rights.

He realizes the importance of education and decides that he has to learn how to read and write at all costs. He realized that reading was a skill that would end up helping him. After he gains understanding of the word abolition, Douglass is all set to get out and go to the north where free men live.

Although it is necessary for him to use force, such as the instance that he fights with Mr. Covey, he ultimately used his educated mind to attain his goals. He states that the fight uplifted his spirits and rekindled a fire that had been put out a long time ago (Douglass 86). It was necessary for Frederick Douglass to create a new relationship to the economy after his realization that he could do better for himself.

He had ambitions that were deep seated in him right from the beginning, since he always dreamt of escaping to the north where he would be a free man. The desire to escape was fired up in Douglass at the tender age of 11 after his master passed on and he realized that he was classified among the livestock on the farm. Most of the reactions that are elucidated upon emanate from the authors realization and education.

At one point in time, he started teaching other slaves how to read and write. The situation works out for Frederick Douglass when he finally escapes to the north and reunites with his fiancée then starts working as his own master. His ultimate moment comes when he attends an antislavery convention and starts crusading against the vice from that point onwards.

In a synopsis, Douglass shows that education is crucial to change and there is no way that one can go without the other. For a person to be able to embrace change, he or she will first have to learn about the advantages that it will bring along.

Change is inevitable and along with it comes education. All decisions that are made ought to be based on the circumstances together with the knowledge that a person has in the field that he or she is concerned.

Works Cited

Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave, New York, NY: Doubleday, 1845. Print.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2019, June 2). The Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-life-of-frederick-douglass-an-american-slave/

Work Cited

"The Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave." IvyPanda, 2 June 2019, ivypanda.com/essays/the-life-of-frederick-douglass-an-american-slave/.

References

IvyPanda. (2019) 'The Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave'. 2 June.

References

IvyPanda. 2019. "The Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave." June 2, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-life-of-frederick-douglass-an-american-slave/.

1. IvyPanda. "The Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave." June 2, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-life-of-frederick-douglass-an-american-slave/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "The Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave." June 2, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-life-of-frederick-douglass-an-american-slave/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1