Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

Douglass says that "it is not uncommon for slaves even to fall out and disagree among themselves about the relative goodness of their masters." Why did slaves praise their masters in this way, according to Douglass?

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  A. They were treated better when they worked for richer masters than when they worked for poorer masters.       B. They felt better about themselves if they worked for a richer master than others worked for.       C. They hoped that their masters would hear about their comments and reward them.       D. They enjoyed arguments and fights as a break from the dreary routine of work and punishment at the hands of their masters.
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To some extent they hoped that their masters would hear about their comments and reward them.  I think that, more to the point,  they were afraid that the whites to whom they were speaking would report their insolence and they would be punished. Douglass also wrote of the wild and mournful beauty of the slave songs and how they suggested the horrors of slavery.