Assignment Topic: Write a well-argued essay about Douglass’ Narrative. Your essay should
include an original thesis, effective supporting claims, and strong evidence—evidence that is
analyzed and discussed in innovative ways. You are not required to do research for this
assignment. However, if you use sources, please use scholarly sources. Do not rely on general
research found online. Please speak with me if you need help identifying a scholarly source or if
you have any questions about citations.
Please write your essay about one of the following topics:
1. Resistance Literature. How is the Narrative resistance literature? How does it seek to
represent and destabilize the system of enslavement?
2. Family: The Narrative is quite focused on the ways that enslavement affects families.
How does the book leverage ideas of the family to represent the damage of enslavement
(consider discussing the figure of the mother, for example)?
3. Autobiography. Douglass’ Narrative is an autobiography, and so the authorial “I” is
particularly important. But how is the authorial “I” a problem for a formerly enslaved
Black man writing about his life and slavery? How does Douglass manage or address the
complicated nature of Black authorship under white oppression (and with a mostly white
reading public)?
4. Open Question: Choose your own topic. However, if you choose your own topic, you
must email me about it first.
