As the anti-slavery movement moved on, it became apparent that public speaking was perhaps the most direct and thus successful method of persuasion. It also became clear that while the reasoning and opinion of whites on abolitionist issues was relevant, the voice of an African American seemed to be more heartfelt and emotional. Likewise, the word of a first-hand witness to the horrors of slavery, a former slave, would testify with the most force. (Pease) This persuasive characteristic was evident in the words of Fredrick Douglass. He was born on a plantation in Maryland in the 1820s where he lived and worked for years, witnessing the terrors of slave life on a plantation. His words testified to the beatings, the hunger, and the solitude that came from separation from his family. In addition to his years of enslavement on the plantation, Douglass also worked as a personal servant to a couple in Baltimore after being sold by the plantation owner. It was there that Douglass taught himself to read and write, two aspects of knowledge that eventually led him to his escape to the north. After escaping to the north, Douglass used his urban experience as a calker to find employment at a New Bedford wharf. His life as a freeman eventually led him to the abolitionist cause. In 1839, during his first anti-slavery speech, Douglass spoke against the colonization movement to a group of New Bedford blacks. His audience responded well and in 1841, he continued his speaking career before the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society in Nantucket. Douglass's story of life as a slave, entitled The Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, was printed in 1845 and read nationwide as is known still today as one of the most famous slave narratives in history.
Examples of Douglass's speeches:
Related Websites:
Read the "Questions for Thought" page after reading each of these documents.