Fredrick Douglass overcame the struggle of slavery, as he used the power of knowledge to escape to New York and become a famous author and orator, while heavily participating in the abolitionist movement. Additionally, he wrote “The Narrative of the Life of Fredric Douglass: An American Slave” to document his life as a slave. A major factor in this autobiography was the ideal that slavery dehumanized and damaged both the slaves and the slaveholders. The slaveholders tortured the slaves, enough for them to potentially lose their humanity by being treated as property or as livestock. Additionally, it also took away the compassion from slaveholders because they were given power over other human beings. This was seen with Sophia Auld; who was once a kind-hearted slave-owner, until the power went to her head and she lost her humane qualities. Douglass highlighted this through his characterization, symbolism, and diction. …show more content…
She treated slaves as real people instead of as animals or as objects. Per Douglass, “she had bread for the hungry, clothes for the naked, and comfort for every mourner.” This means that she gave the slaves the support they needed to feel like people, such as food, clothes, and comfort. Her compassion towards Douglass resulted in Mr. Auld screaming at her that education makes the slaves unmanageable with the power of knowledge and intelligence to escape. This changed her by forcing her to give into the pressure of the power corruption. This highlights how slavery was inhumane and even damaged the slave owners as well. The system corrupted and changed Mrs. Auld because she accepted the position of containing complete control over another person. Thus, her characterization completely transformed from one who cared for everybody to one who fell in the struggle of