What was douglass’ new mistress like

Acting sycophantic or ignorant did not work with her; she did not get offended if a slave looked her in the eyes or spoke to her. Unfortunately, this amiability and kindness was short-lived. She too would become full of rage, menace, capriciousness, and impatience.

She was a perfect example of how slavery was not only detrimental for the slave but for the slaveholder as well. When Douglass first went to live with Mr. Auld, she decided to try and teach him his ABCs. This lady, however, is different. Not only does she let him look her in the eyes, she actually gets mad when he puts on his "crouching servility" act and starts bowing and shuffling around.

And then she starts teaching him to read. Douglass is confused by all this. But he doesn't have to worry about it for very long. Auld has never had a slave before, so she doesn't know that you're not supposed to treat them like human beings. When Mr. Auld catches her teaching Douglass his ABCs, he gives her a lesson. Teaching a slave to read isn't just a bad idea, it's against the law. If you teach a slave to read, he tells her, he won't be satisfied with being a slave any more, and then he'll be no good to anyone.

At first Douglass is bummed. He hadn't been all that pumped about learning to read originally, but now that he's not allowed to , he gets a whole new perspective on the matter. Her tragic flaw was her romanticism. Her parents- -a Jew and a Christian—had crossed ethnic and religious boundaries and taught her that love was worth any risk and without it, she was nothing.

The best example was the death of her own mother, at 57 with a tumor, which she remained convinced was a child in her womb. My novel is about two free women who, ironically, become enslaved by love in a romantic triangle.

Read the novel to find out! Ottilie died, alone, in a Paris hotel. She left her estate to Douglass. Everyone depends upon someone, upon a community to survive and thrive.

I wanted to lift the veil which shrouded these two women in history. I wanted to celebrate these women and render them alive again in the human imagination and the human heart. What is real? Yet Anna Douglass remained illiterate.

Are you a teacher or a librarian?