As I read some
of my classmates blog posts, I don’t understand why many of them give lots of
importance to the part where Douglass doesn’t talk about his escape because he
wants to avoid others “the most embarrassing difficulties” (90) and other
reasons. Maybe if Douglass’ had included some details about this, there would
have been more action but who cares? He escaped anyway and that was what I was
praying for through the entire book. Plus, he leaves some things unsaid and
unclear which adds suspense and mystery to the ending. I, for one, will be one
of those that won’t be at peace until I find out how Douglass’ really escaped
and earned his freedom.
Going back to
the way I felt reading Frederick Douglass’ narrative, I get to the conclusion
that I got to the point where I admired him so much that he became my hero. He
is different from all the other heroes I have admired before. Instead of
wearing a red cape or awesome high heel boots, he wears nothing more than a
pair of trousers. (40) The heroes that have always been presented to us,
usually have some kind of super power such as being invisible, or they have received
tons of education or money (for example Spider Man or Iron Man). On the other
hand, Douglass became a hero from zero. His conditions were so terrible, you
could even say he started all the way from the negatives to being a role model.
He learned how to read and write (chapter VII) all by himself. He was once
invisible too but not in the way characters like Violet from The Incredibles is
but in a more cruel way. He, and all his race, was invisible to the world. No
one cared about them, no one cared for their feelings. That’s absolutely not a
superpower someone would like to have. Anyway, Douglass managed to overcome the
many obstacles put on his way and he became a role model for many including me.
Even with the
vivid descriptions and narrations, I am grateful for reading this memoir. It has
opened my eyes to the cruel reality which we know many little of because many
times, it is hidden from us. “I was now my own master” (99) he said. And now
the story is yours. Are you going to be your own master? Or will you let others
bring you down?
To compare and contrast the slavery in the times of Frederick Douglass and that of today, I read an article from The New York Times written by Quentin Hardy: Global Slavery by the Numbers. With the prices, it is easier to understand what the slave owners of today earn. In Frederick Douglass' memoir, you don't really know because the value money they used then is way different than the one we have today. I can't understand why even today, there are people who use different types of slavery (such as sexual slavery and human trafficking) as a business intelligence. I am shocked to find out that even though slavery is illegal "there are 27 million slaves worldwide, more than in 1860, when there were 25 million." It also makes me very sad to know that while I have lots of commodities, in South Asia there are many child slaves that work for example in fishing or gathering stones because this is the only way they can live.
"The developed world is a consumer of slave labor" says Dane Atkinson, chief executive of SumAll. For me, a world that in many cases relies upon slave labor, is not "developed" at all. I support foundations, such as the SumAll Foundation, that are fighting slavery and making people realize there are many other ways to survive.
Vocabulary:
evincing- (verb) reveal the presence of a quality or feeling
pomp- (noun) ceremony and splendid display
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