Seth Benson

Ms. Burke
Honors English 11
12/2/2016
The Emotional and Psychological Oppression of Frederick Douglass

The life of a slave was incredibly difficult and was explained well in the autobiography of

Frederick Douglass. They were oppressed in more ways than just one such as physically, legally,

intellectually, emotionally and psychologically. I believe that the most harmful forms of

oppression were psychological and emotional. The slaves went through dehumanization which

took away the basic qualities of a humans life. They also had to endure excessive punishment

with the goal of turning them into lesser humans that only work and sleep. The slaves were

always afraid of the unknown with what would happen if they were to attempt escape, or with

inconsistent punishments. Frederick and his fellow slaves were oppressed most significantly by

psychological and emotional harm such as dehumanization, excessive punishment, and fear of

the unknown.

Frederick went through a horrible process of psychological oppression called

dehumanization. The process of dehumanization was to make the slaves feel like they were lower

beings. It was also so that they focused only on their work and absolutely nothing else. The

slaves were not allowed to learn to read or write or else they may realize that they could be

treated like normal human beings. In the narrative Mrs. Auld attempts to teach Frederick the A B

Cs, but Mr. Auld finds out and becomes furious. He explains his reasoning for not wanting

Frederick to learn by saying, A n****r should know nothing but to obey his master- to do as he

is told to do. Learning will spoil the best n****r in the world. (Douglass 48) He believes that if
a slave were to learn to read they would not be as focused on their work. Another way of

dehumanizing the slaves was their unsuitable quarters. They had to sleep on a cold clay floor

with only a sack as cover, when this is done, old and young, male and female, married and

single, drop down side by side, on one common bed- the cold, damp floor- each covering

themselves with their miserable blankets. (Douglass 27) The slaves were so close together that

they had no room to move. This was an easy way for the slaves to contract infectious diseases.

They were not treated like they were human beings, and even often times worse than animals.

The next example of psychological and emotional oppression was the excessive

punishment used by slave owners or masters. The reason that the owners used excessive

punishment was to make the slaves scared of what would happen if they did not work. Relatively

early in the story we hear the story of Demby, a slave who did not follow orders. At first he was

being whipped by his overseer, Mr. Gore. Demby ran from Mr. Gore and submerged himself in

the river to escape the whipping. Without hesitation Mr. Gore shot Demby. This scared not only

the slaves, but the rest of the people on the plantation, A thrill of horror flashed through every

soul upon the plantation, excepting Mr. Gore. (Douglass 39) From this point on the thought of

being murdered for disobeying orders was always in the back of Fredericks mind. Although this

incident did not stop Frederick entirely from being rebellious, he continued to intentionally defy

his owners throughout the autobiography. Later in his life Frederick was sent to a man famous

for Breaking slaves, named Mr. Covey. He lived with Mr. Covey for a year receiving brutal

beatings and unnecessary punishments. His first task given to him by his new master was to get a

load of wood, using untamed oxen. When Frederick failed to complete this task, Mr. Covey

whipped him savagely. Eventually Frederick could not take any more, About three oclock that

day, I broke down: my strength failed me; I was seized with a violent aching of the head,
attended with extreme dizziness; I trembled in every limb. (Douglass 77) He had been

emotionally and physically broken.

Throughout the narrative the slaves are afraid of the unknown. Often times Frederick

entertains the idea of escaping to the North and finding his freedom. It takes him many years

from his first thought, to actually go through with his plans. The first time he had thought about

escaping was when he spoke to a pair of Irishmen that encouraged him to find freedom up north.

Frederick was paranoid that these nice men would capture him and turn him in for money. He

says, White men have been known to encourage slaves to escape, and then, to get the reward,

catch them and return them to their masters. (Douglass 56) This is an example of him being

oppressed psychologically because he wants his freedom, but he is afraid to pursue an escape

because he believes he is being set up. Another example of slaves being afraid of the unknown is

when Captain Auld treats the slaves inconsistently, In the enforcement of his rules, he was at

times rigid, and at times lax. (Douglass 65) Slaves sometimes believed that they would go

unscathed for certain actions when Captain Auld would release his fury on them. At other times

when slaves were certain they would be punished they could go unharmed. This psychologically

messes with them because they never have a firm sense of what is acceptable and what is not.

The emotional and psychological oppression that slaves went through in their lifetime is

comparable with that of a holocaust survivor or a soldier who had been taken hostage in a war.

Later in the novel Frederick talks about how speaking to white people caused him to become

uncomfortable. Even the abolitionists caused Frederick to be tense. This was a result of his fear

of the unknown. As he got used to living as a free man he became more accustomed to the life of

someone treated like a regular human. The wounds from his punishments may have healed, but

his mind was scarred forever.