On the recordJanuary 1, 1855
The frequency of this had the effect to establish among the slaves the maxim, that a still tongue makes a wise head.
Said by
Frederick Douglass
Source
gutenberg.orgFrederick Douglass: “The frequency of this had the effect to establish among the slaves the maxim, that a still tongue makes a wise head.”
Editor's note · Context
Douglass explains how the constant threat of punishment for speaking truthfully led enslaved people to adopt the maxim that silence was a form of wisdom and self-preservation.
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