NARRARTIVE
OF THE LIFE OF
FREDERICK DOUGLASS,
AN AMERICAN SLAVE
BY FREDERICK DOUGLASS
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Comprehension Questions
After reading each chapter, answer the following questions. Answer every question in complete
sentences.
CHAPTER 1
1. Why is Frederick not sure when he was born?
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2. What is Frederick’s last name at birth?
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3. Why would slaveholders want to keep a slave ignorant of such a simple thing as the date
of his birth?
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4. Who were Frederick’s mother and father?
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5. Why does Frederick make the point that a slaveholder who has fathered a child is likely
to be tougher on that child?
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6. Why does Frederick only rarely see his mother?
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7. Is Frederick’s relationship with his mother typical of other slave children? Explain.
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8. What is the role of the overseer on the plantation?
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9. What is the relationship of the slaveholder to the overseer to the slave on the plantation?
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10. What do we learn about Plummer, the overseer?
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11. Who is Frederick’s first master?
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12. Why does Frederick tell the story of Lloyd’s Ned?
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CHAPTER 2
1. Who were the family members of Frederick’s master Colonel Edward Lloyd?
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2. What is the relationship of Colonel Lloyd to Frederick’s master?
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3. Was there a pecking order among slaves? Explain.
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4. Why would a slave whose life on a plantation was very bad fear being sold to a slavetrader?
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5. Why was Severe an appropriate name for the overseer?
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6. Why is it difficult to find copies of slave songs?
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7. Why does Frederick suggest that slaves sing out of sorrow rather than out of joy?
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CHAPTER 3
1. How did Colonel Lloyd keep the slave boys from taking his fruit?
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2. Why was it particularly difficult to be the slaves in charge of Colonel Lloyd’s horses?
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3. What is ironic about Colonel Lloyd’s treatment of his horses compared to the treatment
of his slaves?
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4. What happened to the slave who told Colonel Lloyd the truth about his master?
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5. What is a maxim?
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CHAPTER 4
1. Why is Mr. Austin Gore a “first-rate overseer”? What is the irony of this description of
him? What is ironic about his name?
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2. What reason does Mr. Gore give for killing Demby the slave?
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3. What other examples does Frederick give of his statement “that killing a slave, or any
colored person,... is not treated as a crime, either by the courts or the community” (p. 41)?
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CHAPTER 5
1. What was life like for Frederick on the plantation?
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2. Why was Frederick so happy to be leaving the plantation?
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3. Why did he particularly want to go to Baltimore?
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4. What relationship did his new master have to his old master?
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5. Why did Frederick, who was seven or eight, not know the month or year of his sailing?
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6. What were Frederick’s initial impressions of his new mistress, Mrs. Sophia Auld?
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CHAPTER 6
1. To what does Frederick attribute the kindness of Mrs. Auld?
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2. What, according to Frederick, changes her?
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3. Why is Mr. Auld angry when he finds that Mrs. Auld is teaching Frederick his letters?
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4. Why does Frederick call Mr. Auld’s forbidding his learning how to read “invaluable
instruction?”
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5. Why does inability to read keep men enslaved according to Frederick and to Mr. Auld?
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6. What does Frederick hope to gain by learning how to read?
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7. Who teaches Frederick why black men are not taught to read?
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8. Why is this lesson so important to him?
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9. How are city slaves different from plantation slaves?
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10. How are city slave owners different from plantation slave owners?
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11. Why does Frederick relate the story of the slaves Henrietta and Mary?
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Short Answer:
12. During Chapter 6, Frederick Douglass has an awakening. He finally realizes the key to
freedom—education. How can learning to read and write help him to be free? In what
ways would the abilities to read and write help him? What advantage would he have over
other slaves?
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CHAPTER 7
1. How did Mrs. Auld change and why did she change?
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2. What plan did Frederick adopt to learn how to read now that Mrs. Auld was no longer
teaching him?
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3. Why is it ironic that he bribed the little white boys to teach him to read?
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4. What irony does Frederick find in this statement: “It is almost an unpardonable offence to
teach slaves to read in this Christian country?”
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5. What did Frederick learn from the book “The Columbian Orator?”
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6. How does Master Auld’s prediction about Frederick and learning come true?
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7. How does Frederick learn the meanings of the words abolition and abolitionist?
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8. What do the two Irishmen encourage him to do? Why does he not trust them?
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9. How does Frederick learn to write?
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10. How does he trick the white boys into teaching him new letters?
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Short Answer:
How would knowing how to read and write and having knowledge help a slave?
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CHAPTER 8
1. Why was Frederick forced to return to the plantation after the death of his master?
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2. How was the value of the master’s property determined? How were the slaves valued?
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3. Why was the division of property between Mistress Lucretia and Master Andrew so
horrifying to the slaves?
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4. What happened to Frederick’s grandmother after the deaths of Lucretia and Andrew?
How does this anecdote help explain the value of slaves?
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5. How are slaves valued when compared to livestock? [The ironic comparison of slaves to
livestock is a continuous theme of the narrative.]
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6. Who owns Frederick by the end of chapter eight?
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7. Why is Frederick forced to leave Baltimore?
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CHAPTER 9
1. Why does Frederick now know the date?
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2. Who is Frederick’s newest Master?
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3. What rule of slaveholding does Master Thomas Auld violate?
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4. How did the slaves get food?
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5. Why does Frederick say that “adopted slaveholders are the worst”?
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6. What, according to Frederick, happens to Master Thomas Auld after his conversion to
Christianity? Why?
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7. Why does Frederick find irony in the fact that the slaves Sabbath school is discontinued?
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8. Why does Frederick let Master Thomas’s horse run away?
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9. Again, Frederick compares the treatment of slaves to the treatment of horses. How?
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10. How does Master Thomas propose to ‘break’ Frederick?
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CHAPTER 10: PART 1
1. Briefly describe Frederick’s experience with the oxen:
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2. What did Frederick do when Covey asked him to take off his clothes?
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3. How did Covey respond?
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4. How long did Covey give the slaves to eat their meals?
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5. Frederick says that Covey was one of the few slaveholders that could do what?
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6. Why did the slaves call Mr. Covey “the snake?”
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7. Why did Covey buy Caroline?
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8. Frederick claimed that Covey had broken him in what?
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9. Frederick begins to think that the Chesapeake Bay, “this very bay,” will do what for him?
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10. Frederick states that during the first six months at Covey’s we witnessed “how a man was
made a slave.” Now we will witness what?
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11. What happened to Frederick while fanning wheat?
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12. Who did Frederick decide to go to for help?
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13. What was his Master’s decision?
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14. What did Sandy tell Frederick to get before he went back to Covey’s? Did it work?
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15. When Covey went to tie Frederick up in the barn what did Frederick say he was
“resolved” to do?
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16. What did Frederick do to Hughes when he came to help Covey?
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17. How long did they fight?
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18. What did the fight with Mr. Covey do for Frederick?
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19. What did Covey have the reputation of being?
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20. Why did Frederick think the slaveholders allowed the days off for holidays? Was it for
the slaves or for the slaveholders?
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CHAPTER 10: PART 2
1. Who did Frederick go to live with after Covey?
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2. How was this man different than Covey?
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3. Describe how Frederick felt each religious man to be a hypocrite:
a. Rev. Daniel Weeden:
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b. Rev. Rigby Hopkins:
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4. What term does Frederick use to describe his treatment in Mr. Freeland’s employment
when he compares it to Covey’s?
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5. What did Frederick begin to do with Henry and John?
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6. Where did Frederick hold the Sabbath school?
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7. At one time, Frederick had how many scholars?
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8. What did the slaves risk by going to the Sabbath school?
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9. Frederick said that he went through this first year with Mr. Freeland without receiving
what?
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10. Frederick claimed that Mr. Freeland was what?
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11. What did Frederick tell himself he must do before the year 1835 passed?
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12. What are several reasons in which slaves would give up the concept of running away?
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13. Why did they plan to take a water route over roads and through land?
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14. What did Frederick write for each slave before they ran away?
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15. Why was Frederick more anxious than others?
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16. While working the morning of the planned escape, Frederick began to suspect that they’d
been what?
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CHAPTER 11
1. For what two reasons does Frederick tell us that he cannot relate the means of his escape?
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2. Why does he not approve of the Underground Railroad?
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3. What does Master Hugh do to attempt to encourage Frederick to continue to earn money?
What effect does his encouragement have?
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4. What does Frederick ask of Master Thomas? What is he told?
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5. What arrangement does Frederick eventually make with Master Hugh? Why is this
arrangement to Master Hugh’s advantage? Why does Frederick agree to it?
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6. What does Master Hugh do when he discovers that Frederick has left town to find work?
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7. Why does Frederick decide to work hard despite the dissolution of their agreement?
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8. When and to where does Frederick run away?
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9. Why does he feel so lonely?
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10. Who helps Frederick in New York? How?
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11. How is it possible for Frederick and Anna to marry? Why is their marriage such an
important event?
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12. Why does Mr. Ruggles suggest that Frederick not stay in New York and go to New
Bedford, Massachusetts?
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13. Who helps Frederick and Anna in New Bedford? What does he do for them?
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14. Why did Frederick change his name so many times? Who chooses Douglass? Why?
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15. What had Douglass believed about life in the North? Was he correct? What does he find
about life in the North?
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16. How were the wharves in New Bedford different from those in Baltimore?
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17. What conditions did he find for “colored people”?
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18. What does Douglass discover about prejudice against color in New Bedford?
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19. How does Douglass make a living when he can’t find work as a caulker?
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20. How does Douglass become known to the “anti-slavery world”?
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21. Why is Douglass at first reluctant to speak out against slavery?
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APPENDIX
1. Why do you think Douglass added the appendix?
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2. What does he mean by “slaveholding religion”?
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3. Why does Douglass contend that the church turns the other cheek on the treatment of
slaves?
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4. How does he compare the slaveholding Christians to the Pharisees and ancient scribes?
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5. How does he criticize the church of the north?
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ESCAPE FROM SLAVERY
Briefly describe how Frederick was able to escape from slavery:
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