Frederick
Douglass
Rhetorical
Devices
Freedom
vs.
Slavery
Speech Content
Quotes
100

Who gave the speech "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?"?

Frederick Douglass

100

What kind of question does Douglass use to challenge the audience without expecting an answer?

A rhetorical question

100

What is the main reason Douglass says he cannot celebrate the Fourth of July?

Because enslaved people are still not free, so the holiday is not for them.

100

What holiday is Douglass criticizing in his speech?

The Fourth of July

100

Finish the quote: "This Fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must ______."

Mourn

200

Was Frederick Douglass born free or enslaved?

He was born enslaved.

200

What literary device does Douglass use in “the crushed and bleeding slave”?

Imagery

200

What does Douglass say enslaved people experience instead of freedom?

Chains, suffering, and oppression.

200

Who is Douglass addressing in his speech?

White American citizens

200

In which part of the speech does Douglass say, "The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice are not enjoyed in common"?

When explaining that enslaved people do not share in America's freedom.

300

In which city did Douglass give this speech?

Rochester, New York

300

What rhetorical strategy does Douglass use when he repeats "In the name of..."?

Anaphora (repetition)

300

What does Douglass mean when he says "Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us"?

It shows how far apart white and Black Americans are in terms of rights and freedom.

300

What does Douglass compare enslaved people to using a Biblical reference?

The Israelites in captivity in Babylon.

300

What does Douglass declare he will not do when he says, "I will not equivocate, I will not excuse"?He refuses to soften his words or justify slavery.

He refuses to soften his words or justify slavery.

400

In what year did Douglass deliver this speech?

1852

400

What type of appeal is Douglass making when he references God and the Bible?

Ethical or religious appeal (ethos)

400

How does Douglass use the Declaration of Independence to argue against slavery?

He points out that it promises liberty and justice, but America is not following it.

400

What document does Douglass reference as being contradicted by slavery?

The Declaration of Independence

400

"The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought ______ and ______ to me."

"The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me,"

500

What was the name of the anti-slavery newspaper Douglass published?

The North Star

500

What  appeal does Douglass use to make the audience feel guilty?

Pathos (emotional appeal)

500

What does Douglass mean when he calls slavery “the great sin and shame of America”?

That slavery is the country’s biggest moral failure and contradiction.

500

What does Douglass call slavery in relation to America?

Fill this in - The great ___ and ____ of America

"The great sin and shame of America."

500

What literary device does Douglass use when he says, "To drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty... were inhuman mockery and sacrilegious irony"?

Metaphor—comparing American liberty to a temple while enslaved people remain in chains.