I'm not sure how to feel about Frederick Douglass/his life.I cannot say that I truly 'enjoyed' this narrative;to say that I enjoyed it is to say that I enjoyed watching Schindler's List or Amistad or listening to an extremely sad song.This is not a story one can enjoy.Sure there are parts to it that are sort of uplifting and that make you feel a little better.But the truth of the matter is that I do not believe that the author himself enjoyed his own life.We know that Frederick lived the grueling life of a slave and by means of planning and somehow luck he was able to find himself a free man.But,I,like most people,do not find enjoyment out of the misfortune of others.If I had to say what my favorite part of his story was it would have to be the part where Fredrick's mistress unwittingly taught him how to read and how he learned how to write by imitating his master's penmanship.I mean,Fredrick's later life would be focused almost entirely on his literacy,without his literacy,one would not remember him very well,would we?We wouldn't have him in our history books or our literature books without the fact that he was able to transcend such a peculiar institution as slavery and learn how to do something,such as read and write that was not expected of him and was prohibited for him.

This story sort of makes me feel as if I have yet to truly live my life.There hasn't been anything really that has shaped me in such a way as slavery shaped Frederick.It is not that I am 'jealous' of the life that he lived,I am just envious at the fact that Frederick was able to rise above it and exceed the expectation that people held of him.Maybe one day I will be able to put my name on a great piece of work like Frederick did.Maybe one day I will be able to make a difference in the world.But until then,I guess I will have to live a life of general obscurity.