Douglass says, "At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument is needed" (lines 138-139). Why does he say this, and what is it that he finds ironic?

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Juarez

English

17 June, 18:26

Douglass says, "At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument is needed" (lines 138-139). Why does he say this, and what is it that he finds ironic?

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Juliette Sloan · Answer 1

He says this because he is discussing the Fourth of July - - Independence Day.

Douglass says, however, that not everyone is independent. Some Americans, he reasons, are far from independent - - namely slaves. It is ironic that, on a day Americans celebrate freedom, a large portion of the population is anything but free.