Riassunto
Riassunto di Dalla schiavitù verso la libertà: un’autobiografia
A chi è rivolto
For readers who love true stories of struggle and effort, anyone curious about American life after the Civil War, and teachers and leaders who build institutions.
Che cos’è questo libro
Up from Slavery is the life story of Booker T. Washington, who was born into slavery in Virginia and became the best-known Black educator in the United States. It was published in 1901, when Washington was the head of Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and one of the most talked-about men in the country. He first told parts of it in a magazine, then gathered the whole into a book. He wrote it to explain how he got his education, how he built a school from nothing, and what he believed his people needed most.
The book moves in a straight line. It begins on a small Virginia farm, passes through the coal and salt works of West Virginia, follows a long walk to a school in Hampton, and ends with a school of his own and a speech that made him a national figure. Along the way Washington tells many small stories. Some are funny, some are painful, and nearly all are meant to teach. He writes in a calm voice and rarely lets anger show.
You will get a clear picture of life before and after emancipation, a sense of how one man thought about work, dignity and money, and the reasons his views drew both praise and sharp criticism. Let us begin with the place and the family into which he was born.
In questo riassunto
- 1A childhood begun in bondageFree
- 2Freedom arrives and brings new burdens
- 3Learning to read through labor
- 4The long road to Hampton
- 5What Hampton taught him about dignity
- 6Building Tuskegee from nothing
- 7The Atlanta speech and its argument
- 8Honor, travel and the work of a lifetime
- 9How the book has been read and challenged
Punto chiave 1 di 9
A childhood begun in bondage
Washington opens with his birth on a small farm near Hale's Ford, Virginia. He says plainly that he does not know the exact date or even the year. He knows only that he was born a slave on a plantation owned by a man named James Burroughs. The place was not a grand estate. It was a modest farm, and he suggests that this made life there hard in its own way.
His mother, Jane, was the plantation cook. The kitchen was also the family's home. It was a one-room cabin with a dirt floor, no glass in the windows, and a hole in the ground where sweet potatoes were stored. Booker slept on a pile of rags in a corner. He tells of the cabin being cold in winter and of the family eating whatever his mother could snatch from the cooking. He recalls being woken at night when she roasted a chicken for her children.
He never knew his father. He says only that his father was a white man from a neighboring farm, and he adds that the man gave him no help or care. He writes about this without bitterness, which is typical of the whole book. He does not blame the individuals. He blames the system that shaped them, and he adds that he thinks slavery harmed white families as well.
He remembers small, sharp things. One is the flax shirt he had to wear, which was rough like a row of pin points against his skin. His older brother John once wore it first to soften it for him. Another memory is of carrying books to school for his young mistress and seeing a room full of children learning. He felt it was like being shown heaven.
These early pages set up the main question of the book. If a boy begins with a dirt floor, no name of his own and no right to read, how does he end where Washington ended? He gives part of the answer here. Even as a child he wanted one thing above all, which was to learn to read.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Booker T. Washington
- Washington is the autobiographical narrator, born into slavery in Virginia, whose pursuit of education leads him to Hampton.
- Armstrong
- Armstrong is the leader of Hampton Institute, Washington’s mentor, and the educator who recommends him to lead Tuskegee.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 78,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 5 h 10 min
- Listening time8 h 35 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 13 other languages
Questions about Dalla schiavitù verso la libertà: un’autobiografia
What is Up from Slavery about?
It is Booker T. Washington's autobiography. It traces his life from birth into slavery in Virginia, through his education at Hampton Institute, to his founding of Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and his rise as a national leader.
Is Up from Slavery a true story and when was it written?
Yes, it is a true account written by Washington himself and published in 1901. It first appeared in a magazine in parts. It reflects his own memory and his wish to present his philosophy of education.
What is the main message of Up from Slavery?
Washington argues that patient effort, practical skills, good habits and service to others build self-respect and win the esteem of neighbors. He holds that economic strength and education are the surest base for racial progress.
What is the Atlanta Compromise in Up from Slavery?
It is the name critics later gave to Washington's 1895 Atlanta address. He urged cooperation between the races, with Black Southerners focusing on work and education, while accepting social separation for the time being.
Is Up from Slavery hard to read?
No. The prose is plain, the chapters are short and the story moves in time order. Most readers find it clear and easy to follow.