In Kant’s philosophy essay, he discusses the cause of failure for enlightenment and what is require from people for enlightenment to flourish. Kant defines enlightenment as “the human being’s emergence from his self-incurred minority” (Kant 1). He further explains minority is the inability to think and judge on your own without rely on other people’s opinion. Kant sets examples such as the government officer, tax officer, and clergyman; unenlightened people obey their order immediately without questioning. However, Kant claims that a society is inevitably enlightened if there is freedom. Freedom is essential to enlightenment because it allows people to “make public use of one’s reason in all matters” (Kant 5). That is, to question what has been set up by the authority and to believe in your own reasoning.

Kant’s philosophy is seen in Frederick Douglass’s autobiography. Douglass is a born slave and he doesn’t have clear idea of what is to be a slave in his childhood since a slave is not permitted to have education. Just like his new master said, “it [knowledge] would forever unfit him for the duties of a slave” (Douglass 10). Douglass is later transfer as a property from his old master to Baltimore to serve his new master. Given the opportunity by his new mistress, Douglass has the chance to learn to read and write. Having an education is the turning point of Douglass’s life of slavery. After he attains education, the thought “I AM A SLAVE FOR LIFE” (Douglass 11) bothers Douglass a lot because he finally realize what he is in the society. “The more I read, the more I was led to abhor and detest slavery, and my enslavers”(Douglass 11). Knowledge brings rebellious thought against his enslaver and knowledge brings enlightenment to Douglass. He starts to worship freedom, he wants to be free as the white man.” [spirit of freedom] provides a space for the latter to expand to its full capacity” (Kant 10).  With the full understanding of slavery, Douglass questions the white man’s power to enslave the black man. Douglass develops his reasoning on his own without anyone’s guidance and eventually determined to escape to find his freedom.