The Civilized and Self-Cultured Black Man Essay -- Narrative Life Fred

The Civilized and Self-Cultured Black humannessIn Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An Ameri depose Slave, Written by Himself, Frederick Douglass faces the conundrum of detailing his transformation from slave to man in a port which is acceptable to both his audience and his own authorial purpose. Douglass must straits the thin line between being powerful and being saturnine to his white audience. He attempts to avoid becoming a threat by appropriating the experience of a self-made man, as defined in William E. Channings assay entitled Self-Culture. Douglass constructs his manhood in terms of purification, a tactic by and by employed by Ida B. Wells in her anti-lynching campaign. Although physical strength and the pass from civilization into the wilderness was an equally popular construction of manhood at the time, Douglass follows Channings belief that true manhood is achieved through knowledge, the mastery of letters and refinement of manners. This conception of masculinity centers around moral uprightness and self-control as a means of suppressing passions and desires, the latter being something that most of Douglass masters lacked. If civilization indicates manhood, then the brutal masters described in Narrative be not men at all. This reversal makes Douglass, the slave turned self-cultured man, a representation of true manhood. According to Channing, every man has the potential to be a great man. Through self-culture, and the resulting moral and intellectual growth, men can expand and live up their potentials, becoming ideal men. Channing understands moral instinct as the suppression of passions and desires that are inherent in human nature, only when are not good for soul.When a man looks into himself, he discovers...d... ... image of this civilized man is reinforced by Douglass narrative voice which takes on the Harvard style tone, that sounds much like Channings voice in Self-Culture. This tactic may have been to support his use of Channings ideas, but it also gave Douglass the unique order of speaking in the same style as his audience. This would perhaps be unexpected by his white Northern audience, but nevertheless reinforces Douglass civility. By taking popular conceptions of civilization, self-control and literacy, and applying them to himself, Douglass invents in himself the representation of true manhood. working CitedChanning, William E. The Works of William E. Channing. Boston American Unitarian Association, 1875.Douglass, Frederick. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written By Himself. New York Penguin Books USA Inc., 1968.