Read the paragraph below.When Tyrese dropped his crutches and limped to the starting block, the audience froze. Then the starter’s signal sounded, and the swimmers dove in. An awkward splash emerged from lane eight, but Tyrese began reaching and kicking in earnest, keeping pace with many of his opponents. All eyes measured his steady progress. Then, the mass on the bleachers leaned toward the finish, lips bitten, fists clenched, and silently willed every swimmer’s hand hit to the wall.
Read this excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.To use his own words, further, [Mr. Auld] said, "If you give him an inch, he will take an ell. He should know nothing but to obey, to do as he is told to do. Now," said he, "if you teach [him] (speaking of myself) how to read, there would be no keeping him. It would forever unfit him to be a slave. He would at once become unmanageable, and of no value.
Read this excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.I am strongly tempted to give the names of two or three of those little boys, as a testimonial of the gratitude and affection I bear them; but prudence forbids;--not that it would injure me, but it might embarrass them; for it is almost an unpardonable offence to teach slaves to read in this Christian country.
Read this excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.In moments of agony, I envied my fellow-slaves for their stupidity. I have often wished myself a beast. I preferred the condition of the meanest reptile to my own. Any thing, no matter what, to get rid of thinking! It was this everlasting thinking of my condition that tormented me.
Read the paragraph below.Jonas entered the gym and waved to Fiona, his physical therapist. With her guidance, he walked across the floor with a walker, gently putting weight on his injured leg. Then he sat on the bench and lifted the weight she recommended. On the final repetition, he gritted his teeth in discomfort. Finally, he allowed her to demonstrate two new stretching exercises that would restore his flexibility. He tried each one dutifully and assured her that he would perform them every night.
Read the paragraph below.The extracurricular activities my father proposed failed to intrigue me. The volleyball club at the community center boasts of competitive tournaments, and the basketball clinic at the high school describes intense training drills. Though these would offer physical outlets, exercise is not my top priority because I already play soccer on the weekends. I countered with my own suggestions: a robotics class or a math club.
Read this excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.[Mrs. Auld] had bread for the hungry, clothes for the naked, and comfort for every mourner that came within her reach. Slavery soon proved its ability to divest her of these heavenly qualities. Under its influence, the tender heart became stone, and the lamblike disposition gave way to one of tiger-like fierceness. The first step in her downward course was in her ceasing to instruct me.
Read this excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.I used to talk this matter of slavery over with them. I would sometimes say to them, I wished I could be as free as they would be when they got to be men. "You will be free as soon as you are twenty-one, but I am a slave for life! Have not I as good a right to be free as you have?" These words used to trouble them; they would express for me the liveliest sympathy, and console me with the hope that something would occur by which I might be free.
Read this excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.The more I read, the more I was led to abhor and detest my enslavers. . . . I loathed them as being the meanest as well as the most wicked of men. As I read and contemplated the subject, behold! that very discontentment which Master Hugh had predicted would follow my learning to read had already come, to torment and sting my soul to unutterable anguish.
Read this excerpt from The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.[Mrs. Auld] had bread for the hungry, clothes for the naked, and comfort for every mourner that came within her reach. Slavery soon proved its ability to divest her of these heavenly qualities. Under its influence, the tender heart became stone, and the lamblike disposition gave way to one of tiger-like fierceness. The first step in her downward course was in her ceasing to instruct me.
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