Comparing and contrasting the slave narratives of Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs - Essay Example
Douglas was born into slavery on the shore of Maryland in 1818 and successfully escaped in 1838 after which he settled in Bedford. While there, he got involved with Massachusetts Anti-Slavery society and lectured audiences about slavery. Later, he wrote his book and became an American abolition movement leader. Jacobs was also born into slavery in 1813 in North Carolina. She was taught to read and write by her master who later died and she was left under his relatives. Her new master attempted to sexually abuse her which led her to spend seven years in hiding. She later worked as a domestic servant in New York and eventually settled in Massachusetts in 1862. It is after this that she wrote her slave narrative. Both writers’ lives as slaves had great effects on their writings. Douglas life as a slave enabled him to bring out the necessary emotion and experiences of a slave and hence becoming a victorious abolitionist writer.