In response to Jessica lin’s post “ the desire to learn”, i am agree with Jessica’s thinking that the desire of learning education is the main key for Douglass and Jose to their success .

As Jessica mentioned in the “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”, Douglass was mistreated by his owner, his owner also said that teaching slaves how to read and write, will only make them unmanageable and valueless to the owners. But just because these words, it motivated Douglass. Douglass was a slave that always wanted to be free, but by those words, he understand he can be free by gaining knowledge, and be a valuable person. His desire of learning is to be free one day, and that motivated him to be a educated person. his education eventually helped him escaped slavery.

The same also apply to Jose in “Black Shack Alley”, Jose’s grandmother didn’t want him to work at the sugar cane fields just like other kids, so she encourage him to go to school for an education, she believed as long as Jose study hard, the education will bring him to different level in life. Jose’s desire of learning is not to be working like his grandmother, or other kids. His desire motived him and even got him a scholarship because of his excellent work.

The desire and motivation of learning changed their life, without these, they might still just be one of the slave.