This is the book's longest and perhaps most important chapter. Initially, Douglass returns to familiar themes, declaring again his contempt for histrionically religious slave owners. One such man was Covey, who bred slaves for profit. He was, however, one master who worked with his hands and thus knew what kind of work each slave could endure. His sneakiness and ability to deceive were his strengths to the degree that Douglass thinks Covey may have fooled himself into believing that he was a religious person.
Religion is an important element throughout Douglass' life and his Narrative. At the lowest points in his life, he speaks silently to God—for example, while watching the ships on Chesapeake Bay, sailing toward the Northern states. Some critics argue that it was at this point that Douglass became free, for once the mind is freed, the body will follow. Other critics, however, point to the fight that Douglass has with Covey as the real turning point, the moment when Douglass becomes psychologically free. Douglass himself believes that the Covey episode was significant.
Throughout his Narrative, Douglass repeatedly illustrates that Southern whites almost always close ranks when one of them is accused of a misdeed. We saw this behavior in Chapter IV, when the murder of blacks was condoned by the community. Similarly in this chapter, Thomas Auld won't listen to Douglass' complaints about Covey's barbarism.
The incident with Jenkins is puzzling. Douglass never lets us know whether he truly believed in the magical power of the root. Apparently, he was never "fairly whipped" again after the episode with Covey. Did Jenkins' root provide this protection? Douglass' opinion on this matter is unclear, for he says that he "was half inclined to think that the root [was] something more than I at first had taken it to be." Strangely, as a fervent Christian, his religion does not interfere with his adoption of this obviously pagan superstition. Whether this superstition harks back to an early African tradition is also unclear. It is possible that Douglass is making a sort of affirmation of his cultural roots when he follows Jenkins' instructions.
Douglass is fervent in his depiction of the reasons why slave-holders allow a certain number of holidays for their slaves. Keeping them working all the time would invite insurrections. Furthermore, holidays are occasions for slave owners to encourage drunkenness among the slaves. Douglass feels that slaves are so discouraged by their morning drunken stupors that they are "rather glad to go, from what our master had deceived us into a belief was freedom [that is, drunkenness], back to the arms of slavery." Douglass fails to mention another reason why owners provide holidays. Owners need holidays, too, for they can't spend all year managing and overseeing slaves. Implicit in Douglass' arguments is his criticism of his fellow slaves who allow themselves to be subjugated by alcohol.
Douglass' literacy provided him with a means of forging notes, stating that his group had their master's permission to travel. Douglass plays on the white man's stereotyping of the illiteracy of all blacks. But Douglass' first escape attempt failed because he was betrayed by a fellow slave; the slave system discourages solidarity among slaves. Unlike Southern whites who close ranks to protect their privilege, slaves are discouraged from establishing ties with each other. Douglass again makes an implicit criticism of his fellow slaves who do, or will not, unite for their gain. A united black population would definitely pose a threat to whites.
Later, Douglass again experienced the wrath of a united majority against the minority. After being beaten up in the shipyard and almost lynched, none of his fellow white workers would testify on his behalf that Douglass had been viciously mistreated. The white workers were also united against working with free blacks and slaves; they were afraid that black workers in the job market would eventually take jobs away from them. This fear is not unlike today's backlash against immigrants; many Americans today are indeed worried that immigrants will steal their livelihoods.
