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You may go directly to the collection, The Frederick Douglass Papers at the Library of Congress, in American Memory, or view a Summary of Resources related to the collection.

• Persuasive Language |
• Oratory |
• Writing a Life: The Obituary |
• Designing an African American Pavilion for the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 |
• Letter Writing

Oratory

Oratory was an important of American culture in the nineteenth century. Politicians, lawyers, ministers, and reformers were among those who relied on their public-speaking skills to entertain, inform, and persuade the public. Great orators, who were the celebrities of the era, appealed to the intellect, the imagination, and the emotions, and called upon the audience to take action. Frederick Douglass said of orators:

The function of the orator is high, but it is seldom higher or nobler than this. Where most successful, he resembles his audience as the wave words missing here? the ocean. His weight and volume this thought and beauty are borrowed from the sea of which he rises.

From “Abraham Lincoln, A Speech”  (page 4)

Douglass was in demand as a speaker throughout his adult life.  Read Douglass’ oration at the unveiling of the Freedmen’s Monument in Lincoln Park, Washington, D.C., April 14, 1876.  Compare that oration with Douglass’ speech at the services commemorating the 79th anniversary of Lincoln’s birth on February 12, 1888.

• What techniques did Douglass use in his speech dedicating the Freedmen’s Monument? How did he appeal to the intellect, the imagination, and the emotions?
• How did Douglass characterize Lincoln in this speech?  To what audience did Douglass address his critical remarks? Why do you think he chose this approach on the unveiling of the statue depicting a freed slave on his knees at the feet of “the great emancipator”?
• How did the two speeches on Lincoln differ? Which, in your view, was most effective? Why?

Select one of the many public speeches in the collection and deliver a dramatic reading using excerpts from the selected speech. What insights into Douglass’ effectiveness as an orator did you gain by presenting parts of a speech orally