Social and Legal Definitions of Slavery Narrative of the...

Mr. Covey seemed now to think he had me, and could do what he pleased; but at this moment -- from whence came the spirit I dont know -- I resolved to fight; and, suiting my action to the resolution, I seized Covey hard by the throat; and as I did so, I rose. (Douglass 112, chapt. 10) In Chapter 10 of Frederick Douglass Narrative of the Life of... an American Slave, Douglass describes an important incident in which he forces backward the standard master-slave hierarchy of beating privileges against his temporary master, Mr. Covey. The victory proves for Douglass a remarkable source of renewed yearning for freedom and of self-confidence; as he rose physically, standing up to fight, he rose in spirit. Covey did not have Douglass†¦show more content†¦An examination of the Narrative through a signification-sensitive lens, as defined by Abrahams and discussed by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. in The Signifying Monkey, with attention to narrative detail, will reveal how Douglass both achieves and reflects through his Narrative a powerful independence of self and spirit which itself is independent of both Northern allies and legal and bodily freedom. Many would argue with justification that Frederick Douglass has adopted, to forge his narrative voice, a strong tool of the white, educated society which, in its Southern substantiation, has held him captive. Douglass in part takes the reins of his destiny by (eventually and initially nervously, according to the Narrative) addressing an audience which would once have been unaddressable. When Douglass was a slave the most contact he had with the abolitionists was, at best, their addressing of him, in small, distant doses, through the literature of which Douglass managed to get a hold. A slave can take orders from Southern whites and occasionally receive information or ideas from Northern whites (or abolitionists), but a certain degree of power or status, springing out of ability and freedom to articulate, is required to address them in return. The power to address is, in a small way, a sign of equal intellectual and social footing. Literacy and articulation are very closely linked for Douglass. During his struggle to learn how to read, he says, some anti-slavery argumentsShow MoreRelatedNarrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass Essay1792 Words   |  8 PagesAfrican American Literature Midterm Exam 1. Define who Frederick Douglass was and provide a summary of his book, narrative of the life of Fredrick Douglass: an American slave 1845. Frederick Douglass was an African-American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. Frederick Douglass was the most important black American leader of the nineteenth century. He was born in February of the 1818 and died February 20, 1895. Douglass was a firm believer in the equality of all peoplesRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pagesof Southern Life Lisa M. Fine, The Story of Reo Joe: Work, Kin, and Community in Autotown, U.S.A. Van Gosse and Richard Moser, eds., The World the Sixties Made: Politics and Culture in Recent America Joanne Meyerowitz, ed., History and September 11th John McMillian and Paul Buhle, eds., The New Left Revisited David M. Scobey, Empire City: The Making and Meaning of the New York City Landscape Gerda Lerner, Fireweed: A Political Autobiography Allida M. Black, ed., Modern American Queer History