Essay about What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July
“What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?”
On July 4, 1852, Frederick Douglas delivered his “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” speech. At the time this speech was delivered, Douglas was merely an escaped slave who had been taught to read and write by his slave owner’s wife. He used his gift of literacy to fight for the God-given rights of both African-Americans and women. In “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July,” Douglas cunningly uses bold diction and formatting in order to emphasize to his mostly white audience points of conviction concerning slaves. Douglas starts by asking a sequence of rhetorical questions. In order to stress the separation between slaves and those who have their freedom, he refers to "that" …show more content…
A slave must be a man if he is seen as “moral, intellectual, and responsible” enough to avoid committing any of the seventy-two crimes punishable by death.
All throughout his speech, it is evident that Douglas relies on simple logic and common sense to prove his points. For example, Douglas points out that if he were to ask any man if slavery was wrong, they would say yes. In addition to this, if he were to ask a man if they wanted to be a slave, they would say no. Additionally, Douglas uses God and the Bible as part of his argument. By doing this, Douglas adds highly credited references that will make any opponent’s counterargument seem unnatural, or from the devil. This tactic also allows him to reverse the white man’s manipulation of the Bible that states slavery is God ordained. He turns the tables by then attacking the church for not doing more to put an end to slavery. He recognizes the vast amount of influence that the church plays on society, for both black and white cultures. The church would make more headway than anything else, in terms of slaves gaining their rights, if only it would properly condemn slavery and preach against its evil.
Although he used his speech to inform his audience of the injustices happening to his people and to convict the un-convicted, it was used primarily as a call to action. Douglas emphasizes his call to action when he says, “For it is not light that is needed but fire.” The light
Analysis Of Frederick Douglass 's ' The Meaning Of July Fourth For The Negro '
Frederick Douglass’s “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro” reveals the apparent hypocrisy present in celebrating America’s day of freedom, when some of its people do not get to share in that same freedom. He points out the millions that are still under the antiquated institution of slavery, and states their obvious inability to see this nation as free. In his speech, he expresses this “negro” perspective by utilizing diction, tone, figurative language, and various rhetorical schemes to enforce…
Essay What to the slave is the fourth of july
On Monday July 5th, 1852, Frederick Douglass captivated his audience at Corinthian Hall in Rochester, New York with one of the most powerful antislavery orations ever delivered, “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?”1 As an African American and former slave himself, Douglass was a crucial component to the Civil Rights movement and the abolishment of slavery. His concern for equal rights sprouted as early as twelve years old, often listening to debates among free blacks in Baltimore, as well…
Essay What Was A Slave?
What is a slave? The term slaves references to anyone who is forced to do things or live a certain way against their own free will. The freedom of slaves is something that was achieved December 6, 1865, with the 13th amendment to the constitution by congress. When you look at slavery in America we see that for over 245 years, colored men and women were treated unjustly and unequally to the white population. The topic of slavery is very controversial, but when you speak of slavery you also examine…
Essay about Fourth of July
July is arguably the hottest month of the year. On a merciful day, the air was dry and hot. The sun beat high in the sky, blistering and unforgiving. But today, the sun played peek -a -boo, hiding behind the thick gray clouds that seemed to beg for release. The air was thick, moist, and extremely uncomfortable. The thud of my shoes on the concrete sidewalk beneath me seemed to grow louder with every step. In a lapse of judgment, I decided to go on a quick jog before the Fourth of July celebration--…
What Does The Opening Scene Tell You About The African Slave Trade?
What does the opening scene tell you about the African slave trade? What is learned from the opening scene is that the captured slaves are kept in very poor conditions under the deck of a ship. As we see from the very start there are many of them rushing from the below decks area to overwhelm the men who are transporting them. Though it is hard to tell the exact dimensions of the ship it is obvious that there are many more slaves than there are crew. This leads the viewer to believe that the ship…
Ron Kovic's Born On The Fourth Of July Essay
Kovic's "Born On The Fourth Of July" This was an extremely powerful book. Ron Kovic is very able to get his point accross to the reader. He brings you throughout his life showing you, no. . . showing cannot describe the feeling adequately enough. He puts you into his life, when he goes through the trenches, you go with him. When he hits a home run for little league you can experience, not the joy it brought him at the time, but the pain in remembering that joy now that he can no longer…
1). What did freedom mean for ex-slaves? How did their priorities differ from those of African Americans who had been free before the Civil War? Freedom for ex-slaves meant all sorts of beautiful things like not getting abused by the plantation owners, being able to get an education, being with their families forever with no threat of being separated, being able to live on their own without having any ties to someone or someplace else and so much more. Most were elated by this newfound freedom, some…
We have gained independence from Great Britain, discrimination and lack of equal rights still exist among the people . As shown in the article “The Fourth of July” by Audre Lorde contains about discrimination which occurred on the independence day in Washington D.C. Audre Lorde visits Washington, D.C. with her family where she comes across many things that she wasn’t aware of. Her family couldn’t stand up for themselves which made Lorde get frustrated about the situation. In the story Lorde was…
Analysis of Frederick Douglass, The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro
The concept of the Other is dominant in Frederick Douglass’s text “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro”, for it determines the main conflict and illuminates the issue of intolerance and even blasphemy regarding the attitude of white Americans towards Negroes. The text was written as a speech to commemorate the signing of the Declaration of Independence and delivered at Rochester’s Corinthian Hall on July 5, 1852. It was a remarkable articulation of the Black people voice living in the United…
"What to the slave is the Fourth of July" (BrainyQuote). During my time, The Fourth of July to a slave was not a day to celebrate our freedom. It was a time of harsh treatment with a lack of respect to our color. Our kind was led to believe when our Founding Fathers wrote the Declaration of Independence, that every man was created equal. We had no right to an education, because we weren 't allowed to read and write, even less learn the alphabet. Many of the things that had occurred in my life of…