Introduction
A resource for educators, the Frederick Douglass Anthology makes Frederick Douglass’s most prominent works accessible online. Included in the anthology are selections from his speeches, letters, newspaper articles, and autobiographies that demonstrate Douglass’s multifaceted career as a respected writer, orator, and abolitionist. Specifically designed for research and writing, the website highlights key themes from Douglass’s life.
By recounting his own experiences in slavery, Douglass identified various forms of violence inflicted upon enslaved people –– physical and psychological harm, destruction of the family unit, and inhibition of personhood and identity. At the same time, he shed light on enslaved people’s methods of survival –– literacy and education as empowerment, religion as a source of community and hope, and resilience as a form of resistance. Douglass condemned the hypocrisy of Christians and their betrayal of religious, moral, and American values.
The anthology further traces Douglass’s political thought and activity. Douglass used his voice and his pen to educate and persuade. He often drew from the Constitution and Declaration of Independence to appeal to patriotism, and from the Bible and conscience to call for humanity. Before the Civil War, Douglass also grappled with the question of violence as a tool for freedom –– particularly as his good friend John Brown attempted to incite a slave insurrection through the Harpers Ferry Raid.
Douglass’s career did not end with emancipation. As women sought suffrage, immigrants sought legal status, and Black Americans continued to suffer racism and prejudice, Douglass now fought for equality. Even after the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments were ratified, lynchings and various forms of targeted racial injustice prevailed. In response, Douglass advocated for Black self-sufficiency, all the while struggling with the politics and overwhelming responsibilities of being a public leader. In fact, he faced much criticism while serving as Minister-Resident and Consul-General to Haiti. Douglass’s final years reveal the complicated nature of nineteenth-century Black leadership in local and national communities.
Douglass is a major figure of American history, and this anthology celebrates his thought and activism. When he learned how to read as a young slave boy, Douglass immediately recognized the power of education and learning. He honed his own rhetoric and writing through the Columbian Orator and King James Bible, and he went on to preach the importance of literacy and knowledge to his fellow Americans. Inspired by Douglass’s commitment to learning, the Frederick Douglass Anthology serves as a resource to study his works as a key piece of American literature.
