Similarities Between My Freedom And What To The Slave Is The Fourth Of July

A quote from Frederick Douglass’s speech, “This Fourth July is yours, not. You may rejoice, I must mourn”. Douglass points out that Fourth of July reminds the blacks of what they do not have, the whites get to celebrate but the black have nothing to celebrate. The fourth of July has no meaning to the slaves. Douglass passionately argues how unfair it was for people to celebrate their freedom when some are held captive and how the celebration of independence while allowing slavery is shameful.

Frederick Douglass, a former slave, was one of the greatest public speakers for the abolitionist cause. He was called upon to speak on July 5, 1852, at the Rochester, New York Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society, and gave his famous speech, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July”. Douglass explains how Independence Day is supposed to be a joyous holiday for Americans, however it is more like mockery to African-Americans because, regardless of being freed slaves, they still do not have the freedoms they deserve. Douglass uses different rhetorical strategies to convey his message and emotions to his audience, including biblical allusions. Douglass ends his speech by demonstrating a sense of hope just after painting a very dark picture of reality

Frederick Douglass was an influential African American author, writing about the realities of African Americans stuck in slavery and the internal as well as external dilemmas they faced, capturing powerful messages within his works. With the sheer truth embedded in carefully written words on such a difficult topic to discuss, Douglass differentiates his work from the other African American writers of his time period. With the pursuit of the abolishment of slavery fueling Douglass’s works, his work The Heroic Slave advocates for unification and selflessness in order for slaves to successfully rebel. Examples of how poorly slaves were treated and their rights for better, much deserved conditions are displayed throughout the written piece to try

Frederick Douglass     He was born into slavery and worked on a slave farm in Maryland and in Baltimore when he was very young. Although Douglass got a bit more freedom than any other slave did down south. Slave were allowed or granted with nothing at all because they were slaves and people believe that they deserve nothing but to work more very little or not at all. During his free time Douglass his slave owner's wife had taught him how to read and write but her husband ended that quickly. Shortly after that he found ways to teach him.

Douglass establishes his credibility and authority on the issue of slavery and inequality in the United States by drawing on his own experience and expertise. He begins the speech by introducing himself as a former slave and expressing his sadness and disappointment at the Fourth of July festivities which celebrate the nation’s independence while ignoring the ongoing oppression of African Americans. He says, “I am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary! Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us.” By acknowledging his own identity as a former slave, Douglass gives himself immediate credibility on the issue of slavery and inequality.

After reading the preface, readers see that Frederick Douglass overcomes multiple obstacles and becomes important figure of slavery in history. He overcomes escaping slavery from the southern prison- house of bondage. But, beyond escaping, he went to an anti slavery convention in Nantucket. Although he was still a fugitive slave, he never forgot about the millions of other slaves that were still in slavery. In Frederick’s book he illustrates a theme in the story.

With this, Douglass is addressing the topic of slavery and whether to abolish it or not. And goes about telling the hardships he went through.

In Frederick Douglass’s book, he writes accounts of his time in slavery and beyond. Throughout the book, Douglass writes about not only the physical hardships slaves endured, but the mental and emotional hardships as well. In Chapter X, Douglass describes a battle he had with a temporary slave owner named Mr. Covey. After the fight concludes, Douglass writes, “This battle with Mr. Covey was the turning point in my career as a slave. It rekindled the few expiring embers of freedom, and revived within me a sense of my own manhood.

Freedom is the primary ideal upon which America was founded. It is the tenet most cherished by the original colonists; it is a pillar upon which they built the new government. However, freedom was denied to a large part of America's citizens for a long time. Frederick Douglas was one of the greatest activists for African-American freedom of the 19th century; he used literary works and speeches, instead of violence, to achieve his goals. In his piece "What, to the Slave, is the Fourth of July?"

Frederick Douglas was a former slave and civil rights activist, who was displeased of the treatment of African Americans as slaves and as property. Frederick Douglas presented his anger towards a crowd of white patriots on the harsh treatment of African Americans during a speech titled “Fourth of July Speech.” In this speech, he is perplexed at the reason he was asked to speak. He reminds the audience that he was once a slave and does not understand why the independence of America should make him ecstatic. The fourth of July is a day of celebration for white Americans, while Blacks were still mourning.

“One who is a slaveholder at heart never recognizes a human being in a slave” (Angelina Grimke). This quote was created to show the effect that slavery had on not only the slave, but the slaveholder. The slaveholder would dehumanize the slave to the point where the human was no longer recognizable; instead, the slave was property. Throughout this autobiography, Frederick Douglass uses language to portray the similarities and differences between the two sides. He allows the reader to spend a day in the life of a slave to see the effects from it.

The fourth of July and slaves really don’t mix. Frederick douglass was born as a slave and he does a speech on the fourth of july and they are thinking that he is going to give a whora speech but he dont do that it 's the complete opposite of what they thought. In frederick douglass, Hypocrisy of American Slavery he attacks the hypocrisy of a nation celebrating freedom and independence with speeches, parades and platitudes, while, within its borders, nearly four million humans were being kept as slaves. Overall douglass has explained his speech through emotional,ethical,logical appeal and through rhetorical questions.

Douglass expresses to his spectators, while they dwell in the luxurious ability to partake in this joyous celebration of freedom for a nation, not everyone in that nation is sharing in the celebration. In The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro, he writes “The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common. The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you and not by me. This Fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn” (Douglass 1).

In 1776, on July 4th, the 13 English colonies officially declared their freedom from England. However, as the years progressed, slavery became incorporated into everyday American life. In 1852, Frederick Douglass, a former slave, was called upon to deliver a speech to celebrate America’s independence; however, he censured Americans for saying they were a “country of the free”. In the speech, Hypocrisy of American Slavery, Frederick Douglass declares that Americans should not be celebrating their freedom when there are slaves living in the country. He uses emotional appeal, ethical appeal, and rhetorical questions to convince his audience that Americans are wrong celebrating freedom on the 4th of July when slavery exists in their country.

Throughout Douglass's speech, he exceeds expectations by adding excellent examples of ethos, pathos, and unique tone. These examples help the audience see his viewpoints and helps him connect with them. The literary devices used in his speech “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”, aided in his fight against