The Story of the Life of Fredrick Douglass: An American Slave, is a backup story written by Fredrick Douglass himself. The narrative consists of eleven chapters that provide an account of Douglass's life as a slave and his quest to obtain an education and freedom from the institution of slavery. In this story, Douglass struggles to free himself from the mental, physical, and emotional torture of slavery, and from slavery itself. Douglass was taken from his parents at a young age and sent to live in Baltimore with his handlers, Sophia and Hugh Auld. It was through his time with the Auld that he learned of the domination and power of the whites over the blacks/slaves by ensuring that they were not educated. After his discovery, Douglass recounts how he decided to pursue education in order to escape and free himself from slavery. Douglass was determined to get an education, and he used that education to teach his fellow slaves. He was later imprisoned after his escape plan was discovered. Ultimately, Douglass was able to learn how to read and write well as well as how to escape. Fredric Douglass wrote this story in order to let the public know how black slaves were brutally treated by whites. It tells how their owners, in order to satisfy their sexual hunger and increase the slave population, constantly raped female slaves. Additionally, he recounts how slave owners used religious teaching to justify their detestable treatment of slaves. Douglass tells the audience about the harsh conditions he and other slaves faced at the hands of whites, from brutal beatings to the murder of slaves, which went unpunished. Throughout the text, Douglass describes the life that slaves lived and their suffering due lack...... middle of paper...... between black slaves and white slave owners. In conclusion, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave is an excellent personal account of slavery and its brutalities. Douglass highlights the difficulties and brutalities that slaves encountered daily with their white owners. He further explains how education is very important and a key to freedom. Through his true stories, Douglass is able to write to readers how slavery was indeed a brutal act and how black slaves suffered. Overall, Douglass makes it clear that only through education can slavery be fought. Works Cited Douglass, Frederick. “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave.” 2009. The Health Anthology of American Literature. 6th ed. Flight. B. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publ., 2009. 2047-048. Print.