Quotes · verified word for word in the text
Frederick Douglass quotes
8 quotes from 3 of Frederick Douglass’s books on this site, book by book. Each quote is copied exactly from the book’s text in this site’s reader (the Project Gutenberg e-text named under each book) and links to its passage; when this page was built, every quote was checked word for word against that text. Quotes we could not find in a book we host are not listed.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave
It was the blood-stained gate, the entrance to the hell of slavery, through which I was about to pass.
The work of instructing my dear fellow-slaves was the sweetest engagement with which I was ever blessed.
You have seen how a man was made a slave; you shall see how a slave was made a man.
From that time until now, I have been engaged in pleading the cause of my brethren—with what success, and with what devotion, I leave those acquainted with my labors to decide.
My Bondage and My Freedom
I was broken in body, soul and spirit.
Life and Times of Frederick Douglass: His Early Life as a Slave, His Escape from Bondage, and His Complete History
I was nothing before; I was a man now.
I was a changed being after that fight.
“I wish I could be free, as you will be when you get to be men.”