In writing, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas, author Frederick Douglas details his life story as a man born a slave and subsequent rise to freedom. The major theme and message in this work is that slavery is a cruel and intolerable way of life that is overcome through education. The author's main purpose in this work is to expose the side of slavery that dehumanizes the slave person and cruelty they face each day. Douglas uses very detailed descriptions of incidents that occurred in his life to himself and others that he witnessed to show what goes on when others are not watching. The author's message comes out for example on page 927 when he writes, "Mr. Severe was rightly named: he was a cruel man. I have seen him whip a woman, causing the blood to run half an hour at the time; and this, too, in the midst of her crying children, pleading for their mother's release.".
Overall I like this work because it shows with vivid descriptions and examples things that when on while slavery was legal in the United States. At first I thought the work to be dry but once I began reading I could not put it down. It held my attention and uncovered my emotions as I felt great sympathy for what he and his fellow slaves must have endured during those times. Specifically I like how descriptive Frederick Douglas is. The author tells a story and you can see it unfold without having to be there. The work contains a lot of historical marks and it guides the reader through the passing times as it unfolds throughout his life. The author uses a lot of examples and goes into great detail with everything, making it a very interesting read. I found it very easy to follow along and it held my attention as I found myself constantly wanting to know what happened next. .