Frederick Douglass Essay
Choose one of the topics below to write an expository essay about.
You will be graded on your content, organization (intro, body, and conclusion),
and spelling/grammar.
1. Write an essay about all the injustices of slavery.
Thesis: Slavery is one of the worst injustices in human history.
2. Write about how slavery is bad for both African slaves and the white masters.
Thesis: one of the themes of The Narrative Life of Frederick Douglass is that
slavery is bad for everyone, both African-American slaves and the white masters.
3. Write about how female characters are portrayed in the book. How do they
relate to Douglass, and how virtuous they are.
Thesis: Women are symbols of virtue in throughout the story fo Frederick
Douglass's life.
4. Write about the difference between physical slavery and mental slavery in the
story.
Thesis: Throughout his life, Frederick Douglass struggles to be both physically
and mentally free from slavery.
5. Write about how Frederick changes from the beginning to the end of the story.
Thesis: Frederick Douglass changes dramatically from being a slave for life to a
free man.
Sample Essay: Religion and Slavery in
The Narrative Life of Frederick Douglass
Throughout the history of slavery and the story of Frederick Douglass's
life, religion is used by white slave-holding masters to defend and support the
case for keeping slavery as an institution in America. Frederick Douglass
disagrees with the white masters views on slavery as being deviant from the
original and true message of Jesus.
Thomas Auld is the first character in the narrative to become religious.
Frederick explains that in August of 1832 Thomas Auld attended a Methodist
camp. Frederick had high hopes that after attending the camp, Mr. Auld would
free all of his slaves. Instead of becoming more sympathetic to the slaves, Mr.
Auld became more cruel and obdurate. This is the very definition of irony; the
more religious Mr. Auld became, the worse he treated the slaves. "I have said my
master found religious sanction for his cruelty. As an example, I will state one of
the many facts going to prove the charge. I seen him tie up a lame young
woman, and whip her with the heave cowskin upon her naked shoulders, causing
the warm red blood to drip; and in justification of the bloody deed, he would quote
this passage of Scripture- "He that knoweth his master's will, and doeth not, shall
be beaten with many stripes." (pg. 32)This is an obvious misinterpretation of the
Bible. The "master" that Mr. Auld mentions is not an earthly, white slave -holder.
The "master" is God, and the purpose of the passage is to tell people to obey
what God wants or they will be punished.
Frederick Douglass is not an opponent of Christianity. When the book was
first published, some people thought he hated Christians. This is not the case. He
disliked when white masters used Christianity to justify oppression. "I love the
pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ: I therefore hate the corrupt,
slaveholding, women-whipping, cradle plundering, partial, and hypocritical
Christianity of this land." (pg. 71) Frederick Douglass was not opposed to
Christianity; he was opposed to the hypocrisy of the slave owner that beat
innocent people mercilessly, while claiming to be a good person.
In conclusion, religion was used by white masters to justify the injustice of
slavery. This is hypocrisy in its most pure form. Frederick Douglass hated that
religion, which is supposed to be used to help people, was being used to oppress
people.