Frederick Douglass Narrative blog - Sterling

The Summary of the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass gives a brief description of his life in connection to American History. Although his story, as he claims, is not unique compared to the lives of other slaves, this narrative provides insight to today's generation of the hardships of African Americans at that time. In comparison to the introduction to Harper's, this narrative by Frederick Douglass strikes emotion within the reader; sympathy for what he went through as a slave, and pride for how he overcame such oppression. The tone of Frederick Douglass' narrative does not make him sound like he was the only one who experienced such hardships. He uses his story to speak for all of those who did not have the opportunity to learn and share their experiences themselves. This contributes greatly to the understanding of American history.

The Harper's introduction covers a wide range of topics which outline the main purpose of the magazine, which is to educate intellectual readers on a breadth of many diverse topics. Douglass' narrative focuses on one main theme - how a man was made into a slave, and then how a slave was made a man. This personal narrative is inspirational and might typically attract more modern readers. I was more interested and entertained while reading this narrative than I was while reading Harper's.