Educated Slaves

Ozzy Weast

Ms. Alana Crump

ENGL 101-006

25 April 2016

Essay 3 Outline

Educated Slaves

        Being an educated slave was hard as shown in the essay “Learning to Read and Write” by Frederick Douglass and also in the movie “12 Years a Slave” by Solomon Northrup and screenplay by John Ridley.

1. “Learning to Read and Write” by Frederick Douglass
2. “12 Years a Slave” by Solomon Northrup and screenplay by John Ridley

1. Both had to use the materials that they had near them to write.

• In A “Learning to Read and Write” by Frederick Douglass it says on page 188 in the last paragraph “ my copybook was the board fence, brick wall, and pavement; my pen and ink was a lump of chalk.”

• Douglass did not have access to a pen with ink or regular writing papers so he had to use the materials that were around him

• In B “12 Years a Slave” by Solomon Northrup and screenplay by John Ridley Northup wrote a letter back to his friends in Saratoga, New York

• Northup uses a pencil carved from wood, an old store receipt as paper, and blackberry juice heated over a fire as ink
• He made the best use that he could with the materials around him

1. Both were very educated for a black male during the 1800’s

• In A Douglass overcame many obstacles while learning to read and write but he never gave up no matter how hard it was

• Most slaves were illiterate and never learned to read and write but Douglass overcame the odds

• Northup grew up in a free state so it was easier for him to become a literate person with having freedom

• Even when he was a free man it was still uncommon to see a black male that was literate

1. Douglass and Northup ended their lives as free men

• In A Douglass was born into slavery and eventually bought his freedom after many years
• In B Northup was born a free man in Saratoga, New York but was kidnapped into slavery
• Eventually his friends brought his free papers so freedom had to be dealt to Northup