Explain what this phrase means to Douglass, "Mistress, in teaching me the alphabet, had given me the inch, and no precaution could prevent me from taking the ell."
When describing how he paid his child tutors, Douglass says, "This bread I used to bestow upon the hungry little urchins, who, in return, would give me that more valuable bread of knowledge." In what way is "bread" knowledge?
Douglass reads a dialogue between a master and his slave as well as a speech by Sheridan. List at least three details that show a direct result or effect of him reading these texts.
Why does Douglass say in line 121, "I have often wished myself a beast"?
Reread lines 105-112. What words reveal Douglass's perspective on, or view of, slaveholders?
Frederick Douglass describes his ability to read as a curse. Explain why you think he comes to think this way after he worked so hard to learn to read.