Standing with God and the crushed and bleeding slave on this occasion, I will, in the name of humanity which is outraged, in the name of liberty which is fettered, in the name of the constitution and the bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon, dare to call in question and to denounce, with all the emphasis I can command, everything that serves to perpetuate slavery—the great sin and shame of America! In his speech, What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?, Frederick Douglass passionately argues that to the slave, and even to the freed African American, the Fourth of July is no more than a mockery of the grossest kind. What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?. He further stated that all men were not created equal and that The Constitution did not apply to his race of people. Lit2Go Edition. that he is the rightful owner of his own body? Go where you may, search where you will, roam through all the monarchies and despotisms of the old world, travel through South America, search out every abuse, and when you have found the last, lay your facts by the side of the every-day practices of this nation, and you will say with me, that, for revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy, America reigns without a rival. Nobody doubts it. What to the American slave is your Fourth of July? When you can point to any such laws, in reference to the beasts of the field, then I may consent to argue the manhood of the slave. Fredrick Douglass's speech in the year 1852 on… It is the birthday of your National Independence, and of your political freedom. For the present, it is enough to affirm the equal manhood of the Negro race. He explains that people may realize the effects of slavery but choose not to take action against it.... ...“What to the Slave is the Fourth of July” – Rhetorical Analysis It all flows back to his own argument about the holiday on which he speaks. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. No; I will not. The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity, and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. To forget them, to pass lightly over their wrongs, and to chime in with the popular theme, would be treason most scandalous and shocking, and would make me a reproach before God and the world. Darren Randolph, Recommend this book. What to the slave, is the Fourth of July? Then would my task be light, and my burden easy and delightful. What, then, remains to be argued? Having earlier stated the subject of his speech and his perspective on it, Douglass now answers his own rhetorical question. Required fields are marked *. This collection of children's literature is a part of the Educational Technology Clearinghouse and is funded by various grants. We, as a citizen of the United States, are free of not being British subjects. You may rejoice, I must mourn." The time for such argument is past. They acknowledge it when they punish disobedience on the part of the slave. Analysis of Frederick Douglass's speech, how did he construct his argument and did he argue effectively.," WriteWork.com, https://www.writework.com/essay/slave-fourth-july-analysis-frederick-douglass-s-speech-did (accessed October 17, 2020). When the dogs in your streets, when the fowls of the air, when the cattle on your hills, when the fish of the sea, and the reptiles that crawl, shall be unable to distinguish the slave from a brute, then will I argue with you that the slave is a man! "I will not equivocate; I will not excuse;" I will use the severest language I can command; and yet not one word shall escape me that any man, whose judgment is not blinded by prejudice, or who is not at heart a slaveholder, shall not confess to be right and just. This is partly because he claimed to not have a prepared speech. Douglass, a former slave, was invited to speak on July 5th. He used his gift of literacy to fight for the God-given rights of both African-Americans and women. Retrieved April 03, 2021, from https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/45/my-bondage-and-my-freedom/1517/what-to-the-slave-is-the-fourth-of-july-extract-from-an-oration-at-rochester-july-5-1852/. We the people, we as a whole union represent the American eagle. am I to argue that it is wrong to make men brutes, to rob them of their liberty, to work them without wages, to keep them ignorant of their relations to their fellow-men, to beat them with sticks, to flay their flesh with the lash, to load their limbs with irons, to hunt them with dogs, to sell them at auction, to sunder their families, to knock out their teeth, to burn their flesh, to starve them into obedience and submission to their masters? In the next paragraph, he continues to ask rhetorical questions. The sunlight that brought life and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. Due to this and the variant titles given to it in various places, and the fact that it is called a July Fourth Oratio… I shall see this day and its popular characteristics from the slave's point of view. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?. Fellow-citizens, above your national, tumultous joy, I hear the mournful wail of millions, whose chains, heavy and grievous yesterday, are to-day rendered more intolerable by the jubilant shouts that reach them. On July 4th, 1845 Frederick Douglass was invited to give a speech on such a supposed glorious day. Frederick Douglass, "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?. In 1852, the Ladies Anti-Slavery Society of Rochester, New York, invited Frederick Douglass to give a July Fourth speech. You may rejoice, I must mourn. In his speech, What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?, Frederick Douglass passionately argues that to the slave, and even to the freed African American, the Fourth of July is no more than a mockery of the grossest kind. — The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me… This Fourth of July is yours, not mine… … My subject, then fellow-citizens, is AMERICAN SLAVERY. On July 5, 1852, Douglass gave a speech at an event commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence, held at Rochester's Corinthian Hall. To those sitting before him, he let it be known that he was a former slave, and that they were the only ones who truly benefited from Independence Day. Douglas Fredrick’s speech “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” is probably one of the historical narrations presented to reveal and criticize the future of slavery in the United States. In this film, five descendants of Frederick Douglass read excerpts of his speech, "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" Yea! Further, Douglass answers his own question with biting irony about the meaning of Independence Day for this slave. My subject, then, fellow-citizens, is AMERICAN SLAVERY. Their pride causes them similar problems and they end up living ... ... of a male slave, Frederick Douglass in "The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass ... ... a symbol of many different things in cultures around the world: in many African cultures ... ... of World War I on his life style Table of Contents Thesis………………………………………………………………..pg.i Introduction ... ... world and needs to marry Logan when she says, “De Negro woman is the mule of the world as far as I ... ... the Iditarod when a moose charged out of the woods. For more information, including classroom activities, readability data, and original sources, please visit https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/45/my-bondage-and-my-freedom/1517/what-to-the-slave-is-the-fourth-of-july-extract-from-an-oration-at-rochester-july-5-1852/. Douglass, F. (1855). There is not a man beneath the canopy of heaven that does not know that slavery is wrong for him. The speech is perhaps the most widely known of all of Frederick Douglass' writings save his autobiographies. That point is conceded already. Standing there, identified with the American bondman, making his wrongs mine, I do not hesitate to declare, with all my soul, that the character and conduct of this nation never looked blacker to me than on this Fourth of July. Export citation. The veil affects all parts of his life, his fiance leaves him and he can no longer relate to his congregation the same way. The many people who worship the beast and come under the rule of Satan will be cast into hell. In 1852, the Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Association invited Frederick Douglass to deliver a speech for their 4th of July celebration. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. I answer, a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. His speech contains a lot of emotion, including anger. Would you have me argue that man is entitled to liberty? Must I argue that a system, thus marked with blood and stained with pollution, is wrong? If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. Fourth of July shouldn’t be the reason to forget the misery of slavery. Are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us? He makes a valid argument which he supports with references from the bible and from his past experience of being a slave. Douglass begins by asking a series of rhetorical questions, not without the use of sarcasm. For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. Ligue 1 Top Scorers, But, I submit, where all is plain there is nothing to be argued. This, to you, is what the Passover was to the emancipated people of God. The feeling of the nation must be quickened; the conscience of the nation must be roused; the propriety of the nation must be startled; the hypocrisy of the nation must be exposed; and its crimes against God and man must be proclaimed and denounced. My Bondage and My Freedom (Lit2Go Edition). Copyright © 2006—2021 by the Florida Center for Instructional Technology, College of Education, University of South Florida. we wept when we remembered Zion. Titling his speech, “What, to the Slave, is the Fourth of July?” Douglass planned to notify his people of the reality of... ...written and signed on the Fourth of July, 1776, you can say, the nation is an emptiness world that adds a stripe of color and hope into it making it plentiful. (5) This holiday is a mockery to us. I cannot. Peel Police Divisions Map, Lifelabs Reference Ranges, Online view. Would to God, both for your sakes and ours, that an affirmative answer could be truthfully returned to these questions! Home 2 Boov Sequel Release Date, With each, he elaborates on the fact that each argument is so basic, so implicit, that it need not be argued. But I fancy I hear some one of my audience say, it is just in this circumstance that you and your brother abolitionists fail to make a favorable impression on the public mind. The manhood of the slave is conceded. 32, have been circulated online. A photographic portrait of Abraham Lincoln, taken on October 11, 1858, two days before his sixth debate with Stephen Douglas. Douglass was a powerful orator, often traveling six months out of the year to give lectures on abolition. Marxism And Humanism, Your email address will not be published. These sets were created and reviewed by the teachers on the DPLA's Education Advisory Committee. The text of Frederick Douglass’s most famous speech, given in 1852, “What, to a slave, is the Fourth of July?” | DPLA The text of Frederick Douglass’s most famous speech, given in 1852, “What, to a slave, is the Fourth of July?” of 0 His use of ethos, pathos and logos made this an extremely effective speech. Delta Farce Quotes, Email your librarian or administrator to recommend adding this book to your organisation's collection. If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth.". "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" Bottom Basin Rack For Sterling Mcallister 11600-na Under-mount Single Bowl Kitchen Sink, Douglas’s speech regarding the Fourth of July expressed heartache, pain, embarrassment, and humiliation. What point in the anti-slavery creed would you have me argue? It is the day that the colonist or Americans, officially adopted and made theirs the document know as the Declaration of Independence. Douglass declares it to be a very different symbol for slaves: a symbol of injustice and cruelty and victimhood. I can to-day take up the plaintive lament of a peeled and woe-smitten people. You may rejoice, I must mourn. The date that freed us from the vines of Great Britain.That is why we call it "Independence Day". Black Political Thought. To do so, would be to make myself ridiculous, and to offer an insult to your understanding. For there, they that carried us away captive, required of us a song; and they who wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion. Marx On Imperialism, The Fourth of July is a very special symbol that means more things than most people think. Is that a question for republicans? There is blasphemy in the thought. Council For Exceptional Children, It is admitted in the fact that southern statute books are covered with enactments forbidding, under severe fines and penalties, the teaching of the slave to read or write. According to Frank (99), Fredrick Douglas delivered this speech just a day before the celebration of the American Independence day of 1852. Summary of Section 8: America is still not a slave free nation.... StudyMode - Premium and Free Essays, Term Papers & Book Notes. Must I undertake to prove that the slave is a man? pp 40-44. He talks about how this is a day of celebration for their nation, not his nation. His speech is a calling, a calling for change. Oliver Heaviside, His words seem to flow with a heated fervency which could not be stopped. He regularly uses the terms "you" and "me", "us" and "them", to emphasize the fact that this holiday is important to white Americans, but a mockery to African-Americans. Growing up I read about Frederick Douglass, from his fight to freedom to his movies. . Edited by Sherrow O. Pinder. In his speech, What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?, Frederick Douglass passionately argues that to the slave, and even to the freed African American, the Fourth of July is no more than a mockery of the grossest kind. Fellow-Citizens—Pardon me, and allow me to ask, why am I called upon to speak here to-day? "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?" ...“What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” An excerpt from the 1899 Charles Chesnutt biography of Frederick Douglass. Association For Early Childhood Education And Development, and am I, therefore, called upon to bring our humble offering to the national altar, and to confess the benefits, and express devout gratitude for the blessings, resulting from your independence to us? "By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down. Frederick Douglass was still talking about the Fourth of July on the 5th of July. I say it with a sad sense of the disparity between us. ...“What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” An excerpt from the 1899 Charles Chesnutt biography of Frederick Douglass. Extract from an Oration, at Rochester, July 5, 1852." First of all, what is the fourth of July?. Is it to be settled by the rules of logic and argumentation, as a matter beset with great difficulty, involving a doubtful application of the principle of justice, hard to be understood? The third paragraph is where the line is visibly drawn for the audience. You have already declared it. Many copies of one section of it, beginning in para. Douglass was by then a leading figure in the abolitionist movement and a sought-after orator with a reputation for his powerful speeches, which were at once irate, poetic, and brilliantly argued. “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?” Frederick Douglass | July 5, 1852 Frederick Douglass, 1850. Frederick Douglass, however, did realize the results were unsatisfactory. Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. What to the Slave is the Fourth of July” – Rhetorical Analysis In 1852, Frederick Douglass was invited by the Ladies of the Rochester Anti-Slavery Sewing Society to speak at their Fourth of July celebration. He calls for a cease to the damage, and for the exposure of the perpetrator: America. He used his gift of literacy to fight for the God-given rights of both African-Americans and women. Jonathan was also a puritan from the early America, however, he was a preacher. What to the Slave is the Fourth of July” is a very moving piece about what the Fourth of July means to slaves.The speech was given by Fredrick Douglas in Rochester, New York, on July 5, 1852. I answer; a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. had I the ability, and could I reach the nation's ear, I would to-day pour out a fiery stream of biting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stern rebuke. I Am Legend Book Characters, By Satisfy In his speech, What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?, Frederick Douglass passionately argues that to the slave, and even to the freed African American, the Fourth of July is no more than a mockery of the grossest kind. Is it that slavery is not divine; that God did not establish it; that our doctors of divinity are mistaken? Bottom Basin Rack For Sterling Mcallister 11600-na Under-mount Single Bowl Kitchen Sink, Association For Early Childhood Education And Development. They that can, may! If so, there is a parallel to your conduct. Science Fair Questions, Therefore, even a day that is dedicated to the freedom of slaves is not enough to wipe the “blood stains” that is adhesive in the country. Dylan Carlson Earth, How can we sing the Lord's song in a strange land? Do you mean, citizens, to mock me, by asking me to speak to-day? And let me warn you that it is dangerous to copy the example of a nation whose crimes, towering up to heaven, were thrown down by the breath of the Almighty, burying that nation in irrecoverable ruin! My Bondage and My Freedom. On what branch of the subject do the people of this country need light? Douglass, Frederick. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. For the great majority of America, is a symbol of independence from England and the freedom and liberty which accompanies that independence. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody, than are the people of these United States, at this very hour. Would you argue more, and denounce less, would you persuade more and rebuke less, your cause would be much more likely to succeed. Why did they call upon Frederick Douglas to speak that day? That which is inhuman cannot be divine. Whether we turn to the declarations of the past, or to the professions of the present, the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting. is the title now given to a speech by Frederick Douglass delivered on July 5, 1852, in Corinthian Hall, Rochester, New York, addressing the Rochester Ladies' Anti-Slavery Society. It is a very effective rhetorical device. I have better employment for my time and strength than such arguments would imply. Who so obdurate and dead to the claims of gratitude, that would not thankfully acknowledge such priceless benefits? Aldous Huxley Island Summary, I answer, a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. 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