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From looking at the artifact itself, I can see that it is written entirely in French. It is a very official looking document sent to Douglass by the President of Haiti, General Hyppolite in the year 1890 (45 years afterNarrative of the Life was published). The artifact is an invitation, from as much as I can tell, welcoming Douglass to visit the President in the National Palace.
This artifact reveals the extent of Douglass’ fame and influence. Haiti was the first black republic to declare independence, so it is understandable why they would want to invite him, being the foremost black figure in that period of time. What is incredible is that 45 years after his book was published, he was still sought after. This is very telling about Douglass’ character. He never stopped working for his cause and was still seen as an icon 45 years after he first broke through. Many figures in history just pop in and out, but Douglass lit up the world stage for decades, so much so that he was still touring foreign governments nearly half a century later.
After reading over this artifact, I wonder how many foreign governments Douglass toured in his lifetime. Did he travel the world championing the abolitionists’ cause? Did he do work in other countries to improve the lives of their people, or did he mainly focus on the United States?
I also noticed that the document was written in French which causes me to wonder more about this especially since I was unaware that Douglass spoke French. I know the letter is written too him but still I would like to know if he actually taught himself French too or if he had someone else translate this. It also points out how much of an influence Douglas was across cultures which could have to do with his short time period spent in Europe after he had to flee fromt the US. We however are unsure as to if this is a positive letter he recieved from the president and what the president of Hati was addressing him regarding. Although he is quite iconic now in America we aren’t entirely sure about different countries and cultures and how they feel about his influence upon slavery. However still we know he was a worldy man especially for a former slave at this time in history so I am not suprised he’d be recieving a letter from someone so high up in government, even if its of a foreign country. This artifact truely does show the impact Douglass has had across the world, whether positive or negative his name is still known throughout even at this point in time.
I also noticed that the document was written in French which causes me to wonder more about this especially since I was unaware that Douglass spoke French. I know the letter is written too him but still I would like to know if he actually taught himself French too or if he had someone else translate this. It also points out how much of an influence Douglas was across cultures which could have to do with his short time period spent in Europe after he had to flee fromt the US. We however are unsure as to if this is a positive letter he recieved from the president and what the president of Hati was addressing him regarding. Although he is quite iconic now in America we aren’t entirely sure about different countries and cultures and how they feel about his influence upon slavery. However still we know he was a worldy man especially for a former slave at this time in history so I am not suprised he’d be recieving a letter from someone so high up in government, even if its of a foreign country. This artifact truely does show the impact Douglass has had across the world, whether positive or negative his name is still known throughout even at this point in time.
The artifact is written in French as an invitation to Frederick Douglass. The fact that it is written in French shows that Frederick Douglass must have taught himself French. This shows Douglass’ expansion of knowledge and his need to understand everything he encounters. This can be assumed because he did teach himself how to read and write. The writing does not look like it is hand written, so this invitation is not specifically written by the President of Haiti. If the invitation was hand written, it would show a personal closeness between the President and Douglass. Since it is not hand written, it does show Douglass is a significant person and has large influence.
One of the assumptions is that Frederick Douglass was active in supporting social causes, which is why the President of Haiti requested the presence of Douglass even decades after the release of his book. Another reason why the President may request Douglass’ attendance is because the President admires Douglass and sees him as an important figure, even if Douglass’ became inactive after the release of his book.
The artifact is written in French as an invitation to Frederick Douglass. The fact that it is written in French shows that Frederick Douglass must have taught himself French. This shows Douglass’ expansion of knowledge and his need to understand everything he encounters. This can be assumed because he did teach himself how to read and write. The writing does not look like it is hand written, so this invitation is not specifically written by the President of Haiti. If the invitation was hand written, it would show a personal closeness between the President and Douglass. Since it is not hand written, it does show Douglass is a significant person and has large influence.
One of the assumptions is that Frederick Douglass was active in supporting social causes, which is why the President of Haiti requested the presence of Douglass even decades after the release of his book. Another reason why the President may request Douglass’ attendance is because the President admires Douglass and sees him as an important figure, even if Douglass’ became inactive after the release of his book.