Fredrick Douglass Chapter Summary

Fredrick Douglas: “My Bondage and My Freedom” Summary

Fredrick Douglass lived with his owner’s family for seven years in Baltimore. Fredrick was baffled because of his Mistress's sudden change in personality. Learning is the only thing Fredrick really wants to learn. When he does learn to read, he realized something shocking that changed him forever. He thought that she changed her mind about the importance of reading because she was trained to be mean or strict with her slaves. He could talk and laugh, but not read. She was so nice and kind. She didn’t have most of the qualities she should be having as a slaveholder. In fact, she’s supposed to be the opposite. Mrs. Auld gave money and food to the poor.She used to think that he should be treated as a regular person. Then, she started to more violent. One time she was so mad, she snatched the book from him and then scolded him. She then started to track everything that he did. If he stayed in a room for too long, they would think that he was reading. He got so desperate, he turned to help from his friends. They were good friends to him. Some wanted little to nothing in return. He wanted to mention their names in the book, but he doesn’t want to embarrass them in anyway. Back then, it was very shameful to have interacted with a slave. Fredrick talked about slavery freely with his friends. They too opposed the idea that he was a slave. His friends even said that he should be as free as they are. When he turned thirteen years old, Fredrick had succeeded in learning how to read. His knowledge increased, his perception on his environments have changed, his views have also changed. He finally realized that he was a slave-- for life. He had finally figured out everything he needs to know about slavery. Turns out, it was more of a pride thing. With each book that he bought, he gained more and more knowledge about slavery and how cruel and unfair it is. He has now been changed because of the sad, sad truth. He no longer was the light-hearted, happy-go-lucky, and playful little boy that he used to be. After realizing the truth, Fredrick was more sad, depressed, and miserable. He was mad at slavery, not just the things he observed that were related to it. Whenever he saw a colored man thinking that God has done this to them, it bothered him, infuriated even. It wasn’t God’s fault. It was whoever started slavery. Fredrick had no doubts that all this started because of the way his Mistress had changed. She was the reason that he grew up sad and remorseful. He didn’t tell her though. She tried to cheer him up, but he never changed. He thought they were more like deceivers and liars. But, he can’t blame her. If she was in the same position as him, she would have done the same things he had done.