Group Members

• Nada Ibrahim, Anna Shors, Tochi Okeke

Passage Chapter: 10 Page: 58

If at any one time of my life more than another, I was made to drink the bitterest dregs of slavery,[1] that time was during the first six months of my stay with Mr. Covey. We were worked in all weathers. It was never too hot or too cold [2]; it could never rain, blow, hail, or snow, too hard for us to work in the field. Work, work, work, was scarcely more the order of the day than of the night. [3] The longest days were too short for him, and the shortest nights too long for him. [4] I was somewhat unmanageable when I first went there, but a few months of this discipline tamed me. Mr. Covey succeeded in breaking me. I was broken in body, soul, and spirt. [5] My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished, the disposition to read departed, the cheerful spark that lingered about my eye died [6]; the dark night of slavery closed in upon me [7] ; and behold a man transformed into a brute !

Sunday was my only leisure time. I spent this in a sort of beast-like [8] stupor, between sleep and wake, under some large tree. At times I would rise up, a flash of energetic freedom would dart through my soul, accompanied with a faint beam of hope, that flickered for a moment, and then vanished [9]. I sank down again, mourning over my wretched condition. I was sometimes prompted to take my life, and that of Covey, but was prevented by a combination of hope and fear. My sufferings on this plantation seem now like a dream rather than a stern reality.

Annotation 1

The use of metaphor in this sentence, comparing the worst part of a drink with Douglass’ experience emphasizes how horrible his experience was. The metaphor shows how Douglass’ stay was the lowest point of his time as a slave, as dregs are the lowest part of a drink. Lastly, this metaphor sets the tone of despair that is continued in the rest of the passage.

Return to passage

I was made to drink the bitterest dregs of slavery

Annotation 2

Douglass’ use of antithesis emphasizes the wide range if conditions in which the slaves must work. The use of opposites shows that the slaves must work in all conditions despite the danger. This contributes to the overall idea that the slave owners are ruthless.

Return to passage

It was never too hot or too cold

Annotation 3

Return to passage

Work, work, work, was scarcely more the order of the day than of the night.

The repetition of the word “work” in this sentence gives insight into the thoughts of the slaves. This shows that work consumes the minds of the slaves, and they are deprived of the freedom to think of anything else. The fact that the word is short and simple emphasizes the simplicity of the slaves’ thoughts, since they were given little education.

Annotation 4

Although this device is not exactly chiasmus, it achieves the same effect. Douglass uses the contrast between the “long” and “short” to show how his master is never satisfied. The second half of the sentence further emphasizes the same point by explaining how Douglass’ mother is not satisfied even with the most favorable of nights.

Return to passage

The longest days were too short for him, and the shortest nights too long for him.

Annotation 5

Douglass uses climatic structure in this sentence to build up to the most intense part of the sentence, and the reader is left with the most negative and devastating aspect. Douglass begins with physical destruction and progresses to internal destruction. The reader can see that a slaves’ entire being can be destroyed by the evils of slavery, and the sentence helps to evoke sympathy from the reader.

Return to passage

My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished, the disposition to read departed, the cheerful spark that lingered about my eye died;

Annotation 6

The personification in this sentence helps the reader to further sympathize with Douglass. The author uses intense word choice of “died” to end the sentence to leave the reader with the harshest part of sentence. Giving the cheer human qualities makes it all the more devastating when it disappears, as the death of something is one of the saddest and most impactful events that can occur.

Return to passage

My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished, the disposition to read departed, the cheerful spark that lingered about my eye died.

Annotation 7

The metaphor in this sentence makes the destructive aspects of slavery seem inevitable, as these aspects are compared to the night, which is impossible to avoid. Night-time is also associated with the worst evils in life, which, in Douglass’ case, is slavery.

Return to passage

the dark night of slavery closed in upon me

Annotation 8

Throughout the passage, Douglass uses dehumanizing diction such as “tamed me”, “brute”, and “beast-like” in order to show the barbaric effects of slavery. The fact that Douglass regards himself as a brute shows how deeply slavery has effected him personally.

Return to passage

this discipline tamed me… a man transformed into a brute… a sort of beast-like stupor

Annotation 9

Douglass uses a compound sentence in conjunction with ellipses in the final clause. The first four clauses describe the hope and freedom that Douglass experiences for an instant. The final clause is the shortest and least descriptive clause of the sentence. This demonstrates how quickly Douglass’ hopes are crushed, which emphasizes the finality of the destruction. The sentence ends with the word “vanished”, leaving the reader with the most negative and devastating part of the sentence. This sentence contributes to the overall idea that slavery has the effect of breaking the human spirit.

Return to passage

At times I would rise up, a flash of energetic freedom would dart through my soul, accompanied with a faint beam of hope, that flickered for a moment, and then vanished.

Rhetorical term

Return to passage

1.met·a·phor

noun1.a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1.an·tith·e·sis

noun1.a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else.

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1.chi·as·mus

noun1.a rhetorical or literary figure in which words, grammatical constructions, or concepts are repeated in reverse order, in the same or a modified form; e.g. ‘Poetry is the record of the best and happiest moments of the happiest and best minds.’

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1.per·son·i·fi·ca·tion

noun1.the attribution of a personal nature or human characteristics to something nonhuman, or the representation of an abstract quality in human form.

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1. climaxIn composition and speech, climax is the arrangement of details or

ideas in order of increasing importance or force: the principle of saving the best/worst for last.

Vocabulary

Return to passage

1.dregsnoun1.the remnants of a liquid left in a container, together with any sediment or grounds.

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1.dic·tion

noun1.the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing.

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1.el·lip·sis

noun1.the omission from speech or writing of a word or words that are superfluous or able to be understood from contextual clues.

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1.com·pound sen·tence

noun1.a sentence with more than one subject or predicate

Rhetorical Term

Return to passage

1.rep·e·ti·tion

noun1.the action of repeating something that has already been said or written.