"Examines the development of Frederick Douglass's ideas concerning social reform, humanism, and the identity of Black Americans."
"Frederick Douglass was unquestionably the foremost black American of the nineteenth century. The extraordinary life of this former slave turned abolitionist orator, newspaper editor, social reformer, race leader, and Republican party advocate has inspired many biographies over the years. This, however, is the first full-scale study of the origins, contours, development, and significance of Douglass's thought. Brilliant and to a large degree self-taught, Douglass personified intellectual activism; he possessed a sincere concern for the uses and consequences of ideas. Both his people's."@en
"Without a doubt, Frederick Douglass was the foremost Negro American of the nineteenth century. His life and thought represent a significant feature of nineteenth-century American social and intellectual history. The substance and development of Douglass' thought, in particular, pointedly illustrate the intrinsic interrelationship between the Afro-American and Euro-American intellectual traditions. As a thinker, Douglass embodied this inextricable connection. Most important, Douglass' mind vividly reflected the pervasive impact of race on nineteenth-century American thought and life. The central thrust of Douglass' thinking, consequently, was to resolve the deep-seated tension between his identities as a Negro and an American."@en