Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

Explain what Douglass means when he says “this picture sometimes appalled us, and made us ‘rather bear those ills we had/Than fly to others, that we knew not of.’”

How does this help explain why so few slaves were actually able to escape?

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Last updated by Aslan
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This is an allusion to Shakespeare's Hamlet. It simply means that slaves will bear the abuse they have rather than "escape" and perhaps end up in a situation that is worse.