Autobiography Sample

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Description

This excerpt is taken from the autobiography of Frederick Douglas, \"Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglas.\" In it, I am trying to achieve a serious, but relaxed tone.

Vocal Characteristics

Language

English

Voice Age

Middle Aged (35-54)

Accents

North American (General) North American (US Mid-Atlantic)

Transcript

Note: Transcripts are generated using speech recognition software and may contain errors.
I was born in Tuckahoe, near Hillsboro, and about 12 miles from eastern in Talbot county Maryland. I have no accurate knowledge of my age, never having seen any authentic record containing it by far the larger part of the slaves know as little of their ages as horses know of theirs, and it is the wish of most masters within my knowledge, to keep their slaves. Thus ignorant, I do not remember to have ever met a slave who could tell of his birthday. They seldom come nearer to it than planting time. Harvest time, Cherry time, springtime, or fall time. A want of information concerning my own was a source of unhappiness to me. Even during childhood the white Children could tell their ages. I could not tell why I ought to be deprived of the same privilege. I was not allowed to make any inquiries of my master concerning it. He deemed all such inquiries on the part of a slave, improper and impertinent and evidence of a restless spirit. The nearest estimate I can give makes me now between 27 and 28 years of age. I come to this from hearing my master say sometime during the period that I was about 17 years old. My mother was named Harriet Bailey. She was the daughter of Isaac and Betsy Bailey, both colored and quite dark. My mother was of a darker complexion than either my grandmother or grandfather. My father was a white man. He was admitted to be such by all I ever heard speak of my parentage. The opinion was also whispered that my master was my father, but of the correctness of this opinion, I know nothing the means of knowing was withheld from me. My mother and I were separated when I was but an infant before I knew her as my mother. It was a common custom in the part of Maryland from which I ran away to part Children from their mothers. At a very early age, frequently before the child has reached its 12th months mother is taken from it and hired out on some farm, a considerable distance off, and the child is placed under the care of an old woman too old for field labor, for what this separation has done. I do not know unless it be to hinder the development of the child's affection towards its mother, and to blunt and destroy the natural affection of the mother for the child. This is the inevitable result. I never saw my mother to know her as such more than four or five times in my life, and each of these times was very short in duration, and at night She was hired by a Mr Stewart who lived about 12 miles from my home. She made her journeys to see me in the night, traveling the whole distance on foot, after the performance of her day's work, she was a field hand, and a whipping is the penalty of not being in the field at sunrise, unless a slave has special permission from his or her master. To the contrary a permission which they seldom get, and one that gives to him that gives it the proud name of being a kind master. I do not recollect ever seeing my mother by the light of day. She was with me in the night. She would lie down with me and get me to sleep. But long before I waked she was gone, very little communication ever took place between us. Death soon ended what little we could have while she lived, and with it her hardships and suffering. She died when I was about seven years old, on one of my master's farms near Lee's mill. I was not allowed to be present during her illness at her death or burial. She was gone long before I knew anything about it, never having enjoyed any considerable extent or soothing presence, her tender and watchful care, I received the tidings of her death. With much the same emotions I should have probably felt at the death of a stranger