by Renee Sky

Created on: November 11, 2008   Last Updated: December 11, 2008

Frederick Douglass: An Educated American

The typical American strives after an elusive goal to better themselves and to be a stronger, better person. Not all Americans are sure of how to attempt this goal, let alone achieve it. The goal for Frederick Douglass was clear, the path toward that goal was fraught with horror and near death experiences, but he had the will to triumph. Frederick Douglass possessed all the traits attributed to the "American spirit" and also some traits that were uniquely his own. The life of Frederick Douglass gives evidence to the idea that education is the key to freedom and success in America.

Douglas was born a slave prior to the Civil War in Maryland (Douglass 1). He had no knowledge of who his father was, except that he was white and it was rumored that his master was also his father. He only saw his mother a few times as a child when she would sneak twelve miles under cover of darkness to see him and he would fall asleep in her arms. His grandmother was given the charge of caring for him as a young child (Douglass 2). This strain on family ties had a strong impact on the social behaviors that a child developed. For Douglass there was no caring father to be a role model and shining example of manhood; only cruel masters who would whip him to get him in line. He also lacked the gentle understanding of a mother who would always be there for him. This lack of family ties created a very unbalanced life of isolation.

When Douglass was about seven years old he was sent to live in Baltimore, where his new master's wife was kind to him and began to teach him how to read. These reading lessons lasted only a short time. His master found out about the lessons and forbade his wife from further teaching a slave (Douglass 18). However this slight glimpse of literacy was enough to motivate Douglass in his pursuit. He did everything possible to acquire the skills necessary to read and write. He even went so far as to trick other boys into teaching him to write by telling them that he could write better than they could. The boys would inadvertently teach him a new letter, by "proving" that they knew more (Douglass 26). This introduction to education was the fuel that propelled him to persevere through the subsequent rough years of his life.

In 1832 Douglass was sent to live with Master Thomas Auld who in turn sent him to work on Mr. Covey's plantation. Mr. Covey was known for his ability to "break" slaves, by crushing their spirit and beating them

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