In paragraph 2, Douglass writes,

Question

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

In paragraph 2, Douglass writes,

In paragraph 2, Douglass writes, "There I was in the midst of thousands, and yet a perfect stranger; without home and without friends, in the mids of thousands of my own brethren-children of common father, and yet I dared not to unfold to any one of them my sad condition." Why did the author feel such an overwhelming sense of isolation? What textual details can be cited to defend your response?

Asked by Mo'taz M #554896 on 9/20/2016 1:09 AM

Last updated by jill d #170087 on 9/21/2016 11:22 AM

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Answered by jill d #170087 on 9/21/2016 11:22 AM

Douglass felt an overwhelmng sense of isolation because although he was free, unlike those who surrounded him, he was an escaped slave. Unlike those around him, he might be hunted, captured and returned to his former state.

In writing to a dear friend, immediately after my arrival at New York, I said I felt like one who had escaped a den of hungry lions. This state of mind, however, very soon subsided; and I was again seized with a feeling of great insecurity and loneliness. I was yet liable to be taken back, and subjected to all the tortures of slavery.

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Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

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