Severe (II). He speaks of Mr. Gore's "savage barbarity" (IV). He describes how slaves such as his mother die young, and lives like his own are wrecked by having families torn apart (V). He tells of how Mr. Auld did not want him to learn to read because "If you give a nigger an inch, he will take an ell" (VI). He tells how he wished he were dead, so horrible was the stress of being a slave (VII), and tells of being lined up and valuated like livestock (VIII). In all of these events, Douglass emphasizes the dehumanizing quality of his position and the brutality of his oppressors. This make him a sympathetic character, and leads the reader to reject those would treat such a knowledgeable soul so poorly. Logos is an appeal to reason to persuade. In the first chapter, Douglass make such an appeal when arguing that it cannot be possible that slavery is naturally justified in the Bible because of the curse of Ham, since slaves like himself, who have lineages with white fathers, are not direct descendents of...

Covey. Despite his learning and sensitivity, Douglass had never been able to bring himself to make a break from the slavery system and seek his freedom. It was only when he fought his master that he finally made the psychological leap necessary to allow him to eventually seek escape. In this, as in other elements, Douglass makes appeal to those would abolish slavery, suggesting that a fight may ultimately be necessary, if reason and persuasion would not work.