Introduced by Kwame Dawes
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is the powerful memoir of an American slave, published with photographic portraits and a new introduction exclusive to the Folio edition.
‘Classic and elegant in its simplicity and its gripping readability.’
- Henry Louis Gates, Jr
Born into slavery in Maryland, Frederick Douglass escaped bondage to become an abolitionist leader, orator and politician, and one of the most famous African-Americans of the 19th century. His autobiographical Narrative – an immediate bestseller in 1845 – was soon acknowledged as a pivotal text in the struggle against slavery. In this moving and beautifully written account, he lays bare a system that brutalised everyone it touched. Douglass tells of his childhood and youth under a succession of slaveholders, his secret efforts to gain an education, his dawning political consciousness and his determination to escape. This definitive Folio edition includes the complete text of the Narrative, along with Douglass’s famous 1852 speech, ‘What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?’ Bound in striking gold cloth, it bears a photographic portrait of Douglass on the cover – one of eight chosen for the edition. In an exclusive new introduction, poet and literary critic Kwame Dawes emphasises how ‘the struggle for the equality of people of African descent in the United States and around the world make this work relevant today.’
PRODUCTION DETAILS
Bound in printed and blocked gold cloth
Set in Bell
200 pages
Frontispiece plus 6 colour photographs
Blocked slipcase
8˝ x 5¼˝
An inspirational figure
Triumph of a courageous spirit
Wonderful book. Perfect for our library!
Review by Melisa fox on 10th January 2025
I expected more period photographs, in addition to the various portraits.
Review by Rohr Christoph on 27th June 2024
Excellent quality.
Review by MS ANN M PARKER on 6th April 2024
Comprehensive description of the matter
Review by MR NIKOLA RADENKOVIC on 12th July 2023
A beautiful presentation of a hugely important text.
Review by RJS on 26th May 2023
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