A study of the autobiographical works “A Midwife’s Tale, by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich and Narrative in the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, by Frederick Douglass.
This paper compares the books A Midwife’s Tale,” by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich and “Narrative in the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave,” by Frederick Douglass, who are contemporaries of the same era. The paper describes how these individuals lived in very different social and cultural worlds, but at the same time, they had in common their strong inner conviction. The author states that both autobiographies provide us with an important view of this historic period.
“Indeed, Martha’s diary is an intimate glimpse into the daily life of a family in the 18th century, from what they ate, to what diseases decimated the population, to how hard they worked day after day. In contract, Douglass’ autobiography is the broader story of his life, and his fight for equality and freedom. His early life as a slave is chronicled, and the excesses and violence performed by the owners is shown in graphic detail, but the intimate daily details are not part of his narrative, they do not have a place there.”