HW Read....

Being prepared for class activities and discussions is important! It is part of your classroom grade! You are not responsible for "activities" in terms of your homework.

Chapters 3 & 4 Read Thursday night!! Questions Due Friday, Feb 5th!

Chapter 5 & 6---Read/Discussion Monday/Questions due Monday!!

Chapters 7&8 Read in class-Monday Night-do questions (see below) due Tuesday!

Chapters 9 & 10 -Read Tuesday night & HW-Do questions below due Wed!

Chapters 10 Class reading

Chapter 11 and appendix Read and do questions below-due Friday!

Test on Frederick Douglass and 1800s the following week (Feb 15th week).

Read in class-- Tuesday--Chapters 5 & 6---Read and answer questions:

Tells readers more about overseers and relates incidents of slave murders.

QUESTIONS

• Why is Mr. Austin Gore a "first-rate overseer"? What is the irony of this description of him? What is ironic about his name? (English)
  
• What reason does Mr. Gore give for killing Demby the slave?
  
• What other examples does Frederick give of his statement "that killing a slave, or any colored person, . . . is not treated as a crime, either by the courts or the community" (p. 41)? (History)*

QUOTES
Maxim laid down by slaveholders: "It is better that a dozen slaves suffer under the lash, than that the overseer should be convicted, in the presence of the slaves, of having been at fault" (p. 38).

"To be accused was to be convicted, and to be convicted was to be punished" (pp. 38-39). [Another important point that continues throughout the narrative.] (History)

"He dealt sparingly with his words, and bountifully with his whip, never using the former where the latter would answer as well" (p. 39).

Chapter V

Examines Frederick's life as a slave child and discusses his leaving the plantation.

QUESTIONS

• What was life like for Frederick on the plantation?
  
• Why was Frederick so happy to be leaving the plantation?
  
• Why did he particularly want to go to Baltimore?
  
• What relationship did his new master have to his old master?
  
• Why did Frederick, who was seven or eight, not know the month or year of his sailing?
  
• What were Frederick's initial impressions of his new mistress, Mrs. Sophia Auld?

QUOTES
"I may be deemed superstitious, and even egotistical, in regarding this event as a special interposition of divine Providence in my favor" (p. 47).

ACTIVITIES
Draw pictures of slave children in summer and in winter. (Anthropology)
On a map plot the route that Frederick followed to get to Baltimore. (History/Geography)

CHAPTERS 6-10

Chapter VI

Discusses learning to read and explains its importance.

QUESTIONS

• To what does Frederick attribute the kindness of Mrs. Auld?
  
• What, according to Frederick, changes her?
  
• Why is Mr. Auld angry when he finds that Mrs. Auld is teaching Frederick his letters?
  
• Why does Frederick call Mr. Auld's forbidding his learning how to read "invaluable instruction" (p. 49)? (Education) *
  
• Why does inability to read keep men enslaved according to Frederick and to Mr. Auld? (Education)
  
• What does Frederick hope to gain by learning how to read?
  
• Who teaches Frederick why black men are not taught to read?
  
• Why is this lesson so important to him?
  
• Why is the life of a city slave so much better than the life of a plantation slave?
  
• Why does Frederick relate the story of the slaves Henrietta and Mary? (English)

QUOTES
"If you teach that nigger (speaking of myself) how to read, there would be no keeping him. It would forever unfit him to be a slave. He would at once become unmanageable, and of no value to his master" (p. 49).
"I now understood what had been to me a most perplexing difficulty - to wit, the white man's power to enslave the black man. It was a grand achievement, and I prized it highly. From that moment, I understood the pathway from slavery to freedom" (p. 49). (Education)
"In learning to read, I owe almost as much to the bitter opposition of my master, as to the kindly aid of my mistress. I acknowledge the benefit of both" (p. 50). (Education) *
"A city slave is almost a freeman, compared with a slave on the plantation" (p. 50).

ACTIVITIES
Discuss the irony of what Mr. Auld taught Frederick when he forbid Mrs. Auld to teach him to read. (English)
Conduct a role play of Master Auld, Mistress Auld, and Frederick discussing Frederick's learning how to read.
Go to the library and investigate the education of slaves in the United States. Discuss: Was Frederick's situation typical? Why? Why not? (History/Education) *
Discuss: In education we refer to the school's "hidden curriculum," that which is not intentionally taught but is learned by the students. What are some of the "hidden curricula" in the schools you attended? How does Mr. Auld's lesson to Frederick relate to the concept of the 'hidden curriculum?' (Education) *
Examine the concept of reading as equivalent to freedom. (Education) *
Discuss how you might use this chapter with a class of middle or high school reluctant readers. (Education) *

Chapter VII

Relates what Mrs. Auld learned from keeping slaves; how Frederick came to hate slavery and how he learned to write.

QUESTIONS

• How did Mrs. Auld change and why did she change?
  
• What plan did Frederick adopt to learn how to read now that Mrs. Auld was no longer teaching him?
  
• Why is it ironic that he bribed the little white boys to teach him to read? (English)
  
• What irony does Frederick find in this statement: "It is almost an unpardonable offence to teach slaves to read in this Christian country." (p. 54)? *
  
• What did Frederick learn from the book "The Columbian Orator"?
  
• How does Master Auld's prediction about Frederick and learning come true?
  
• How does Frederick learn the meanings of the words abolition and abolitionist?
  
• What do the two Irishmen encourage him to do? Why does he not trust them?
  
• How does Frederick learn to write?
  
• How does he trick the white boys into teaching him new letters?

QUOTES
"Slavery soon proved its ability to divest her [Mrs. Auld] of these heavenly qualities. Under its influence, the tender heart became stone, and the lamblike disposition gave way to one of tiger-like fierceness" (pp. 52-53).

"The first step had been taken. Mistress, in teaching me the alphabet, had given me the inch, and no precaution could prevent me from taking the ell" (p. 53). "I would at times feel that learning to read had been a curse rather than a blessing. It had given me a view of my wretched condition, without the remedy. It opened my eyes to the horrible pit, but to no ladder upon which to get out" (p. 55). (Education) *

"White men have been known to encourage slaves to escape, and then, to get the reward, catch them and return them to their masters" (p. 57).

ACTIVITIES
Discuss the concept of learning as a curse rather than a blessing. Frederick makes this comment on page 55. Is it possible that he is correct? Readdress this issue after you finish reading the book. (Education) *
Write a diary entry of a memory you have about an early reading experience. Discuss how your experience differed from Frederick's.
Write about why learning to read is so important to practicing freedom. Discuss your writing in a small group. Examine the question: Did the slave owners understand that learning to read was important to practicing freedom? (English/History)
Discuss how you learned how to read and write. How did it differ from the methods used by Frederick? (English/Education)
Go to the library to find out how the colonists felt about education. Compare this to how slaveholders felt about the education of slaves. Why was education considered essential for white children in New England and illegal for slave children in the south? (History/Education) *

Chapter VIII

Discussion of slaves as property; plight of old slaves; return to Baltimore.

QUESTIONS

• Why was Frederick forced to return to the plantation after the death of his master?
  
• How was the value of the master's property determined? How were the slaves valued?
  
• Why was the division of property between Mistress Lucretia and Master Andrew so horrifying to the slaves?
  
• What happened to Frederick's grandmother after the deaths of Lucretia and Andrew? How does this anecdote help explain the value of slaves? How are slaves valued
• when compared to livestock? [The ironic comparison of slaves to livestock is a continuous theme of the narrative.]
  
• Who owns Frederick by the end of chapter eight?
  
• Why is Frederick forced to leave Baltimore?

QUOTES
"At this moment [valuation of the property], I saw more clearly than ever the brutalizing effects of slavery upon both slave and slaveholder" (p. 60).

"The hearth is desolate. The children, the unconscious children, who once sang and danced in her presence, are gone. She gropes her way, in the darkness of age, for a drink of water. Instead of the voices of her children, she hears by day the moans of the dove, and by night the screams of the hideous owl. All is gloom. The grave is at the door" (p. 62).

ACTIVITIES
Discuss John Greenleaf Whittier's poem (p. 62). Why does Frederick put this poem in his narrative immediately following the anecdote about his grandmother? (English) *
Go to the library and find other poems by Whittier. What other poems has he written about slavery? Why does Frederick call him the slave poet? (English) *
Trace the ownership of Frederick from the beginning of the narrative through chapter eight. Explain why he is owned by so many different people. (History/Sociology)

Chapter IX

Moves to St. Michael's, Maryland, with Master Thomas Auld; the irony of the Christian slaveholder is discussed.

QUESTIONS

• Why does Frederick now know the date?
  
• Who is Frederick's newest Master?
  
• What rule of slaveholding does Master Thomas Auld violate?
  
• How did the slaves get food?
  
• Why does Frederick say that "adopted slaveholders are the worst"?
  
• What, according to Frederick, happens to Master Thomas Auld after his conversion to Christianity? Why?
  
• Why does Frederick find irony in the fact that the slaves sabbath school is discontinued? (English/Education) *
  
• Why does Frederick let Master Thomas's horse run away?
  
• Again, Frederick compares the treatment of slaves to the treatment of horses. How?
  
• How does Master Thomas propose to 'break' Frederick?
  
• Why is the use of the verb 'to break' ironic? *
  
• Why was Mr. Covey's reputation for breaking slaves of great value to him?
  
• Why does Frederick suggest that Mr. Covey's "pious soul" (p.70) adds to "his reputation as a 'nigger-breaker'" (p. 70)? *

QUOTES
"After his conversion, he found religious sanction and support for his slaveholding cruelty" (p. 67). [This is an important point that Frederick continues to make throughout the rest of the narrative.]

"He would quote this passage of Scripture - 'He that knoweth his master's will, and doeth it not, shall be beaten with many stripes'" (p. 68).

"He resolved to put me out, as he said, to be broken" (p. 69).

"Master Thomas was one of the many pious slaveholders who hold slaves for the very charitable purpose of taking care of them" (p. 69). *

ACTIVITIES
Frederick's contention that men use religion to justify cruelty is not new. Look for examples of this throughout history. (History) *
Frederick points out many ironies in this chapter. Discuss two of them. (English)

Chapter X

How a man is made a slave; a slave made a man.

QUESTIONS

• Why does Mr. Covey whip Frederick?
  
• Why are the slaves so fearful of Mr. Covey? Why does their work go on in his absence?
  
• Why is it "never safe to stop a single minute" (p. 73)?
  
• What does Frederick mean by "Mr. Covey's forte consisted in his power to deceive" (p. 74)?
  
• Why does Mr. Covey buy a slave to use as a breeder?
  
• Why does he hire Mr. Samuel Harrison, a married man? What irony does Frederick find in this?
  
• How does Mr. Covey succeed in breaking Frederick?
  
• How does Frederick succeed in again becoming a man?
  
• Why does Frederick go to Master Thomas Auld?
  
• Why does he return to Covey? Who convinces him to do so? What does Sandy Jenkins suggest that Frederick do?
  
• How does Frederick win the fight with Mr. Covey?
  
• Why does Frederick contend that Mr. Covey does not turn him in?
  
• What would have happened to Frederick had Mr. Covey turned him in? *
  
• Why is Frederick's battle with Mr. Covey "the turning-point in my career as a slave" (p. 82)?
  
• How are the holidays used to "disgust the slave with freedom" (p. 85)?
  
• Where does Frederick go after leaving Mr. Covey's on January 1, 1834?
  
• Who is his new master and how does he treat Frederick?
  
• Why does Frederick include the anecdotes about the two religious slave holders Mr. Hopkins and Mr. Weeden? What point is he attempting to make? *
  
• Why and where does Frederick begin a Sabbath school? Why is it essential that the slaves tell no one about it?
  
• What would the slaveholders like the slaves to do on the sabbath? Why is this ironic?
  
• Why does Frederick decide to include the slaves in his Sabbath school in his plans to obtain his freedom? Why is this dangerous?
  
• Frederick makes the point that many slaves would "rather bear those ills we had, than fly to others, that we knew not of" (p. 93). How does this help explain why so few slaves escaped?
  
• How do the slaves plan to run away?
  
• What is the purpose of the "protections" written by Frederick?
  
• What happens to their plan, and how do the "protections" nearly cause their deaths?
  
• What happens to each of the slaves who attempted to run away?
  
• When Frederick returns to Baltimore, what does he do?
  
• Frederick again decides to fight when he is attacked. What happens to him? What does Master Hugh attempt to do for Frederick?
  
• What must Frederick do with the wages he earns each week as a caulker? Why?

QUOTES
"I do verily believe that he sometimes deceived himself into the solemn belief, that he was a sincere worshipper of the most high God; and this, too, at a time when he may be said to have been guilty of compelling his woman slave to commit the sin of adultery" (p.74)

"Mr. Covey succeeded in breaking me. I was broken in body, soul, and spirit. My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished, the disposition to read departed, the cheerful spark that lingered about my eye died; the dark night of slavery closed in upon me; and behold a man transformed into a brute!" (p. 75).

"Those beautiful [sailing] vessels, robed in purest white, so delightful to the eye of freemen, were to me so many shrouded ghosts, to terrify and torment me with thought of my wretched condition" (p. 76) (English) *

"You have seen how a man was made a slave; you shall see how a slave was made a man" (p. 77).

"He only can understand the deep satisfaction which I experienced, who has himself repelled by force the bloody arm of slavery" (p. 83). (English)

"I now resolved that, however long I might remain a slave in form, the day had passed forever when I could be a slave in fact" (p. 83) (English)

"The mode here adopted [is] to disgust the slave with freedom, by allowing him to see only the abuse of it" (p. 85). (Education) *

"I assert most unhesitatingly, that the religion of the south is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes, - a justifier of the most appalling barbarity, a sanctifier of the most hateful frauds, and a dark shelter under, which the darkest, foulest, grossest, and most infernal deeds of slaveholders find the strongest protection" (p. 86).

"In coming to a fixed determination to run away, we did more than Patrick Henry, when he resolved upon liberty or death. With us it was a doubtful liberty at most, and almost certain death if we failed" (p. 93). (History)

"All at once, the white carpenters knocked off, and said they would not work with free colored workmen. Their reason for this, as alleged, was, that if free colored carpenters were encouraged, they would soon take the trade into their own hands and poor white men would be thrown out of employment" (p. 100). (History)

"I have observed this in my experience of slavery, that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only increased my desire to be free, and set me to thinking of plans to gain my freedom. I have found that, to make a contented slave, it is necessary to make a thoughtless one" (p. 103). (Education) *

ACTIVITIES
Read aloud and discuss Frederick's discussion of sailing vessels beginning with the last line on page 75 and continuing through the end of the first paragraph on page 77. Why does Frederick find the sailing vessels so abhorrent to watch? What do they symbolize for him? At the same time he finds hope in them. What is his hope? What are the sailing vessels a metaphor of? (English) *
Frederick talks about the superstition of slaves when Sandy Jenkins gives him the root to place in his right pocket. Go to the library and see what other slave superstitions you can find. What were the reasons for these superstitions? (Anthropology)
Discuss: Who beside slaves have superstitions? What are some superstitions> you, your family, or your friends hold? Where do they come from?
Read sections of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn to find the superstitions of the slave Jim. Discuss why slaves are superstitious. Why would slaves attribute their deaths to trickery? (English)
Frederick makes the point that although he is still a slave "in form," he is no long a slave "in fact" (p. 83). Discuss how this is possible.
Beginning with the final paragraph on page 83 and continuing to the end of the first paragraph on page 86, Frederick provides his readers with an anecdote about the purpose of the Christmas holiday for slaveholders. Read this section orally. Discuss why slaves are given the Christmas holiday.
Frederick becomes an apprentice caulker. Research the apprentice system of education in the middle Atlantic states. Was it common for slaves or free African Americans to be apprentices? (Education/History)
Several times in this chapter Frederick refers to free colored men and women. Research the free African Americans of the South. Why were some free and most slaves? (History)
Again in the chapter we hear about the legal system and slaves. Research cases in which slaves were tried. What occurred? (History)