Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass Rhetorical Analysis

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The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass:

Frederick Douglass was the only slave, out of many, that went out of his way to learn how to read and write to get himself out of the horrors of slavery. He was born into slavery, he witnessed and experienced all of the terrible things slaves went through, he tricked people into teaching him how to read and write, and also put up with the unjust treatment from the slaveowners until he succeeded in escaping. The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, written by himself, is about what he went through as a slave until he managed to escape. His purpose in writing this narrative was to show how degrading slavery was towards slaves. In other words, to reveal the evils of slavery to the wider public. Douglass uses anecdotes, simile, and rule of three to show that individuals (slaves) were not valued, they were degraded and deprived of their rights, and to show the power the slaveowners had over the slaves.

Throughout the narrative, Douglass uses anecdote to show that slavery did not value a person for their humanity. He says "She had served my old master faithfully from youth to old age...my present owners finding she was of …show more content…
He says "When he spoke, a slave must stand, listen, and tremble" (19). Slaves had to respect and obey their masters when they spoke because they were in charge. Douglass uses rule of three to emphasize the power of the masters and to show that slaves had to obey them no matter what because they owned them. This opposes the American Promise because they are not free. Additionally, he says "The head, neck, and shoulders of Mary were literally cut to pieces" (38). Mary was badly whipped by her master so Douglass used the rule of three to show that the slavemasters could do whatever they wanted to their slaves and they did not have to treat them fairly or with
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