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The author of this account of New Zealand in the year 1827 was an artist by profession. "A love of roving and adventure," he states, tempted him, at an early age, to sea. In 1815 he procured a passage on board a storeship bound for Sicily and Malta, where he had a brother stationed who was a captain in the navy. ... Read more

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In the first narrative of my experience in slavery, written nearly forty years ago, and in various writings since, I have given the public what I considered very good reasons for withholding the manner of my escape.
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The little tour which gave birth to the following remarks, was taken immediately after the exchange of the ratifications of a peace, necessary, but not inglorious to my country, after a contest unexampled in its cause, calamity, extension, vicissitudes and glory; amidst a people who, under the influence of a political change, hitherto unparallelled, were to be approached as an order of beings, exhibiting a moral and political form before but little known to themselves and to the world, in the abrupt removal of habits and sentiments which had silently and uninterruptedly taken deep root in the soil of ages. ... Read more

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These considerations caused me to hesitate, when first you kindly urged me to prepare for publication a full account of my life as a slave, and my life as a freeman. Nevertheless, I see, with you, many reasons for regarding my autobiography as exceptional in its character, and as being, in some sense, naturally beyond the reach of those reproaches which honorable and sensitive minds dislike to incur. It is not to illustrate any heroic achievements of a man, but to vindicate a just and beneficent principle, in its application to the whole human family, by letting in the light of truth upon a system, esteemed by some as a blessing, and by others as a curse and a crime. I agree with you, that this system is now at the bar of public opinion--not only of this country, but of the whole civilized world--for judgment. Its friends have made for it the usual plea--"not guilty;" the case must, therefore, proceed. Any facts, either from slaves, slaveholders, or by-standers, calculated to enlighten the public mind, by revealing the true nature, character, and tendency of the slave system, are in order, and can scarcely be innocently withheld. I see, too, that there are special reasons why I should write my own biography, in preference to employing another to do it. Not only is slavery on trial, but unfortunately, the enslaved people are also on trial. It is alleged, that they are, naturally, inferior; that they are _so low_ in the scale of humanity, and so utterly stupid, that they are unconscious of their wrongs, and do not apprehend their rights. Looking, then, at your request, from this stand-point, and wishing everything of which you think me capable to go to the benefit of my afflicted people, I part with my doubts and hesitation, and proceed to furnish you the desired manuscript; hoping that you may be able to make such arrangements for its publication as shall be best adapted to accomplish that good which you so enthusiastically anticipate. FREDERICK DOUGLASS <3> There was little necessity for doubt and hesitation on the part of Mr. Douglass, as to the propriety of his giving to the world a full account of himself. A man who was born and brought up in slavery, a living witness of its horrors; who often himself experienced its cruelties; and who, despite the depressing influences surrounding his birth, youth and manhood, has risen, from a dark and almost absolute obscurity, to the distinguished position which he now occupies, might very well assume the existence of a commendable curiosity, on the part of the public, to know the facts of his remarkable history. EDITOR INTRODUCTION When a man raises himself from the lowest condition in society to the highest, mankind pay him the tribute of their admiration; when he accomplishes this elevation by native energy, guided by prudence and wisdom, their admiration is increased; but when his course, onward and upward, excellent in itself, furthermore proves a possible, what had hitherto been regarded as an impossible, reform, then he becomes a burning and a shining light, on which the aged may look with gladness, the young with hope, and the down-trodden, as a representative of what they may themselves become. To such a man, dear reader, it is my privilege to introduce you. The life of Frederick Douglass, recorded in the pages which follow, is not merely an example of self-elevation under the most adverse circumstances; it is, moreover, a noble vindication of the highest aims of the American anti-slavery movement. The real object of that movement is not only to disenthrall, it is, also, to bestow upon the Negro the exercise of all those rights, from the possession of which he has been so long debarred. But this full recognition of the colored man to the right.


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When a man raises himself from the lowest condition in society to the highest, mankind pay him the tribute of their admiration; when he accomplishes this elevation by native energy, guided by prudence and wisdom, their admiration is increased.
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Customer Reviews (9)

A Worthy Companion to A Narrative In the Life of Frederick Douglass
I have to be honest, I never knew that Frederick Douglass published another volume of his autobiography. I foolishly believed that A Narrative in the Life of Frederick Douglass was his only book regarding is life as a slave and his life as a free man. I was so wrong. Sometimes I wonder how many other people still believe as I once did...

My Bondage and My Freedom is an exceptional example of auto-biographical writing. Douglass' mastery of the English language is superb! In reading his story and the way he's able to describe his past as a young boy, raised by his grandmother and then sent to begin working, with little knowledge beforehand that he was in fact a slave was so eye-opening.I had no idea that some children, raised during this time were actually allowed to be child for a few precious years before they were introduced to the vile world of slavery.

This book give such a detailed account of a man's struggle to unleash the genius kept constrained by the world into which he was born and raised, is just amazing. I'm still astounded by him even though it's been some time since I finished the book. While a majority of the book describes his life as a young boy and slave (told in the My Bondage section), the rest of the book (My Freedom) tells of his life after he escaped from slavery, his experiences given lectures against slavery, his time abroad in other countries where he was treated as a human being and not as a piece of property and then of his struggles to create and manage his own newspaper once he returns to the United States.

The appendix is also a treasure, as it reprints many of his speeches and lectures on the injustice against humanity that was the slavery system. A Narrative in the Life of Frederick Douglass is one of my all time favorite books and I find that My Bondage and My Freedom is definitely a worthy companion, especially if you are looking for a deeper understanding of the life of Frederick Douglass.

One thing that was missing and that I would love to come across one day, is his writing on his actual escape from slavery, as it is never fully explained in this book. As a reader you only know that he planned it and obviously executed his daring escape with help from others. That would really be a treat...

First Modern Totalitarian Police State
Historians often call the Civil War the first modern war, a precursor to the great battlefield slaughterhouses of the twentieth century. Frederick Douglass shows that America was also first to invent the totalitarian police state. It's hard to believe Stalin didn't have MY BONDAGE AND MY FREEDOM prominently positioned on his bookshelf for frequent consultation because the Soviet system of oppression had so much in common with the system of oppression in the American South. The only significant difference was that, in the Soviet system, absolute power was vested in Stalin; in the American system, absolute power was vested in each slavemaster. Each slavemaster was, in essence, a little Stalin, with life and death power over his slave property.

The slave system rigorously withheld news and information from slaves. A slave often would not know his father or even his own date of birth. He could not lawfully learn to read. He could not travel without written authorization. He could not associate freely with other slaves. He could not safely trust anyone or confide his private thoughts to anyone because planted informers were so numerous. Slaves had to avoid even certain thoughts for fear the slavemaster would see in their facial expressions what was in their minds.

Disguised slave catchers would sometimes help and encourage a slave to escape, only to capture him for the reward. The slavemaster demanded and enforced absolute, immediate, and unquestioned subservience through fear, a liberal use of the lash and the constant threat of transferring a recalcitrant slave to an even harsher labor camp in the deep South.

Yet MY BONDAGE AND MY FREEDOM is by no means a depressing book, thanks to Douglass' irrepressible courage, wit, spirit and good luck when he most needed it. There are even a few intentionally hilarious moments, which I won't give away in this review.

To avoid capture after his escape to the North, Douglass used the fees from his speeches in Great Britain and royalties from his book sales to legally buy his own freedom from his Maryland owner.

The book covers a period of American history I knew little about, the period between the War of 1812 and the Civil War. I didn't know, for example, that the abolition movement early in that period favored secession from the United States on the belief that the Constitution favored the South and backed to the hilt the slave system. An excellent recent book that supports that view is SLAVERY'S CONSTITUTION by David Waldstreicher.

Even though Douglass was a religious, believing Christian, he leveled his most scathing criticism at the way Southerners used Christianity to justify and advance the slave system. He often noted that the cruelest slave masters were also credited as the most religious members of their communities. Some of the worst even had "Rev." attached to their names. The only slavemaster Douglass credited with relative decency and kindness also happened to be an atheist.

Loyal customer
The item arrived on time and this web site was the ONLY place I could find this book as my daughter needed it for her English class at school!
Amazon really came through for me when we couldn't find the book anywhere else.Thank you, thank you, thank you.

A REAL AMERICAN HERO
THIS BOOK IS POWERFUL, ITS SHOCKING, AND IT IS ASPIRING. THERE IS NOTHING ON CHANNEL 11 THAT BRINGS THE HONEST, INSIGHTFUL, VERY REAL ACCOUNT THAT MR.DOUGLASS DOES IN HIS BOOK. FROM SLAVE TO FREE-MAN, THIS IS TRUELY AN AMERICAN SUCCESS. SKIP THE INTRO, AND JUMP INTO IT.

Frederick Douglass's "My Bondage and My Freedom"
Douglass's second, and lengthier, narrative fills in many of the gaps left in his first autobiography: we learn about his mother, his siblings, and more details about his psychological transformation from brute to man. It's quite insightful, as Douglass is careful to relate each of his personal experiences to the innate evil of the peculiar instituition, for both the slave and the slave holder. ... Read more