From Slavery to Individuality: A Marxist Reading of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.

This article examines *Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass* through a pragmatic Marxist lens, interpreting the autobiography as a testimony of enslaved individuals’ inner experiences aimed at fostering moral, social, and political change. It highlights how Douglass’s narrative exposes the brutal capitalist and hegemonic structures underpinning slavery, illustrating the alienation and dehumanization of Black slaves while emphasizing their resistance and pursuit of individuality. Drawing on Marxist concepts of hegemony and alienation alongside Jungian and Nietzschean ideas of individuation and self-realization, the analysis underscores Douglass’s journey from enforced passivity to active rebellion and self-empowerment. The work situates Douglass’s autobiography as both a social critique and a transformative act that challenges oppressive ideologies and asserts Black agency and identity.