Great Works II

As I read Frederick Douglass’ account of his time at Mr. Covey’s farm, I was moved by his determination to escape slavery and become a free man. While he endured the harsh labor and punishments from his overseers, I was surprised by his continued desire to learn how to read despite the fact that severe punishments were given to slaves who were caught trying to educate themselves. The way he continues to value knowledge really stood out to me; Douglass uses the reading lessons he obtained as a child and builds on them as an adult to educate other slaves later on. His dissatisfaction in being a slave for his whole life drives him to oppose all of his masters, until he finally manages to escape the clutches of slavery. Although I was surprised to read that he disagreed with the methods of the “Underground Railroad”, his pursuit of knowledge and self actualization made it easier for me to understand why. Douglass believed that escaping slavery required both the physical escape from the South (which the Underground Railroad provides), but also a shift in mentality in the form of education.

Douglass’ transition from a slave to a free man living in the North was something that caught my attention towards the end of his narrative. While he notes that he felt the “highest excitement” upon arriving at a free state, he also felt “a feeling of great insecurity and loneliness” (284). Despite his initial sorrow, Douglass receives aid from many abolitionists while he briefly lives in New York and when he eventually moves into New England. I thought it was strange for a newly freed slave to receive as much goodwill and aid from white abolitionists as Douglass does during his lifetime.

Even though he receives greatly needed support from his fellow abolitionists, Douglass comments on the disparity between the Northern wharves described by his Southern masters and the real appearance of the wharves. Instead of seeing “dilapidated houses” with “poverty-stricken inmates” as he was told, Douglass notes that “everything [around the wharf] looked clean, new, and beautiful” (287). Douglass appreciates the grandeur of the North as he also removes the false mystification of impoverished life in the Northern states engraved from his time as a slave. By seeing the strength and wealth of a society without slavery, Douglass receives a final positive reinforcement towards his (now completed) desire to be a free man.