... date of birth. He says, "I have no accurate knowledge of my age, never having seen any authentic record containing it. By far the larger part of the slaves know as little of their ages as horses know of theirs, and it is the wish of most masters within my knowledge to keep ... able to identify the problem yet. "A want of information concerning my own was a source of unhappiness to me even during childhood (p339)."" In the same chapter, Douglass writes, "My father was a white man-. He reveals to the readers the implication of his master being his father, but leaves it up the ... the sla...

• Word Count: 1263
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... several instances in which his personal accounts of slavery are highlighted. These instances illustrate important realizations that Douglass makes concerning slavery, and/or about his own condition. The very first chapter of the novel produces the first example: loss of identity. Many slaves had absolutely no concept of time, in terms of factual dates. Slaves were kept "ignorant" as to the ... , in most cases not even knowing the year of their birth, preventing the knowledge of a captive's true age. A birthday is something with which people can identify, as they are a celebrated part of ...

• Word Count: 884
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... hours before their death, it was not considered a crime. They basically believed they could do what they wished with them because the slaves were their property. This is confirmed in chapter nine when Douglass said, "For of all slaveholders with whom I have ever met, religious slaveholders are the worst. I have ever found them the meanest and basest, the most cruel and ... wrong, commit a sin, and so on, attending a church service, or reading the Bible would clear them of all wrong. Many people attended church or other religious services simply to be part of something, a sort of social ...

• Word Count: 730
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School