Frederick Douglass wrote two more memoirs about his life: My Bondage and My Freedom (1855) and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass (1881). Both of these autobiographies are much longer than the Narrative and provide more of Douglass' views about racism and civil rights in the South, as well as in the North. However, the Narrative is more often taught in classes today than the other two books. Recent historical scholarship has focused attention on the minor discrepancies in the three versions. For example, in the last version (1881), Douglass denies having any knowledge of who his father was. Yet in the Narrative (1845), Douglass strongly implies that a white man, perhaps his master, was his father. Such inconsistencies have led scholars to argue that Douglass modified his autobiographies in order to suit changing politics. It is true that in the later part of his life, Douglass was more concerned with racial pride and seemed eager to suggest that his black heritage alone contributed to his success.
My Bondage and My Freedom is basically a continuation of the Narrative. In an early chapter, he gives more information about his mother, who "was the only one of all the slaves and colored people in Tuckahoe" who could read. Douglass admits that he doesn't know how a field hand could have gained this knowledge. Nevertheless, he thinks his thirst for knowledge came from his mother and not from his unknown white father. The underlying rationale for this assertion is to rebuke claims by racists who say that blacks are unintelligent and "uneducatable," or those who argue that Douglass must have inherited his intelligence from his white father. Douglass confirms that even the most abused field slave could learn to read; therefore, his capacity for intellect and love of learning could well have been inherited from his mother.
