Unit 4: Lesson 2: The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass & Author Purpose

On January 20/23, our Bell Work reviewed the concept of metaphor. Writers use metaphors to help readers understand unfamiliar concepts. Frederick Douglass used metaphor to persuade readers how brutal and dehumanizing slavery was. 

We moved onto Author Notes over Frederick Douglass. We read his biography of page 463 and filled out a fake Facebook page for Frederick Douglass. Then, we watched the following  video clip about Frederick Douglass to learn why he was so important and influential in the Abolitionist movement.

We also discussed the concept of dehumanization. When someone is dehumanized, their oppressor no longer views them as human. Their human traits or qualities are removed. They are no longer viewed as someone with a soul, a reasoning mind, or complex emotions. Oppressors dehumanize so they can justify the horrible way they treat their victims. They also use this a way to control the minds of their victims. If someone has treated as an animal long enough, over time they will start to behave like an animal. They will obey their master. (Sounds like slavery, right?)

A Child Called "It" is another example of dehumanization that you may be familiar with.

We then went on to make another addition to your Lit. Term Notes. The term we discussed was Author Purpose or the reason why an author writes his text. It is the goal the writer has in mind when he writes.

The Author's Purpose will be one of 3. Figuring out which one is as easy as P.I.E.!

Then, we read "The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" and tried to determine his purpose for writing his narrative. When you read Frederick Douglass, you should focus on one of the following things:

Homework:

There was also a quiz over Author Purpose the next time we met as a class.

The skill from this lesson that you will be tested over is how to identify an author's purpose (P.I.E.)