From this time I understood the words abolition and abolitionist, and always drew near when that word was spoken, expecting to hear something of importance to myself and fellow-slaves.
Douglass explains how, after learning the true meaning of "abolition," he became keenly attentive to any mention of the term, recognizing its significance for his own freedom and that of others.
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The good to be sought and the evil to be shunned were flung in the balance and weighed against each other.
He was called upon not merely to administer the government, but to decide, in the face of terrible odds, the fate of the Republic.
I looked into this kitchen with peculiar interest, and remembered that it was there I last saw my mother.