While overcoming the life he was destined for, Fredrick Douglass did not begin his journey easily. A slave for life, that's how Fredrick considered himself at first. Doing things that went against the rules of slave life—learning to read and write—helped Douglass understand his situation and how the world actually works against his kind. Gaining more knowledge about what is really happening around him made the situation even more difficult for Douglass. This belief in himself to become something other than a slave made Douglass an extraordinary man, optimistic and sensational to the public, primarily to blacks and anti-slavery abolitionists. This autobiography helped people understand how black people were treated and also the challenges he had to overcome just to get out of that hole. No mother, no “real” father, no aunts, no uncles and no grandmother; Douglass had no family to turn to for support or simply love. The loss of his family has weakened Douglass at times, but helps him gain the strength he needs to escape this slave reality for the rest of his life. Having no family support, he now takes matters into his own hands. He starts talking to his poor white friends - this was when Douglass was known as a "city slave" who somehow had more freedom than a field slave - which helped Douglass in its written part to obtain an education. “I gave this bread to the hungry little kids who, in return, gave me this more precious bread of knowledge. Douglass would strive to get what he wanted - rather, what he thought he needed - and even in the most underhanded ways, just to show that he did not give up easily and would not accept negative response. Douglass...... middle of paper ......ive. “Besides the pain of separation, the fear and apprehension of failure exceeded what I had experienced during my first attempt. This feeling held him back, but he knew that if he didn't make this choice, he would remain a slave for life. Douglass was able to overcome his destiny as a lifelong slave; believing that if a white man can achieve something great, why can't a slave. He showed the world how even a slave can speak intellectually and understand everything he knows. Even when Douglass felt his soul desolate his body, he was able to keep some faith that there is still a light at the end of the tunnel to reach and that if he strives for what he thought he was just, it can become extraordinary. and sensational; that's what he did. By thinking that you are as equal as the person next to you, you will be able to live more freely.