Paper instructions:
In What to the Slave is the Fourth of July? by Fredrick Douglass, a former slave and abolitionist, gives a speech about what the Fourth of July means to those who were and are still slaves (note that this speech was given in 1852, almost 10 years before the beginning of the Civil War). Discuss the purpose of the piece–what does Douglass hope to accomplish here? Does he succeed? Discuss the overall tone and supply examples of the diction (word choice) that support the tone of the piece.