If I have made any progress in knowledge; if I have cherished any honorable aspirations, or have, in any manner, worthily discharged the duties of a member of an oppressed people; this little circumstance must be allowed its due weight in giving my life that direction.
Douglass attributes his intellectual and moral development, and his commitment to his people, to the pivotal event of his removal to Baltimore.
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Our very lack of preparation for the conflict disposed us to look for some other than the way of blood out of the difficulty.
My grandmother was all the world to me, and the thought of being separated from her was a most unwelcome suggestion to my affections and hopes.