Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass: An American Slave

“12 Years a Slave,” an autobiography by Solomon Northrup written in 1853 after he spent twelve years in slavery down in the deep south. Solomon was born a free man to his father Mintus Northrup. Mintus was the property of a man named Henry B. Northrup, whom later became emancipated through Northrup’s dying will. Solomon lived thirty years free, until, the early part of 1841. Solomon went seeking extra money playing his fiddle, this was the turning point of his life for the next twelve years. His description about slavery, slaveholders, and the events throughout his captivity is nothing short of horrific and gives an alternate view through the eyes of a man that was once free. Once kidnapped and beaten severely due to his claim of being free, he quickly realized that his identity had changed. There were only a few times that he discussed his freedom throughout his captivity. Once

The abuse of slaves, women especially, is just one similarity in Solomon’s story while he was on Mr. Epps plantation. Frederick Douglass was a product of a white master and his black female slave. Many masters raped or beat their female slaves more often than male slaves. Solomon describes, how Mr. Epps repeatedly raped and brutally beat Patsey. Patsey was a female slave of Mr. Epps, who Mistress Epps hated with every bone in her body. Mistress Epps often ordered Patsey to be beaten for the simplest reasons. Women on slave plantations often got double the abuse and morale damning than their male counterparts. As described in Eric Forner’s text, Give Me Liberty, some women slaves would kill their own children in order to save them from slavery (486). The psychological impacts that each and every party went through in the early nineteenth century is something only those involved could