I have often been utterly astonished, since I came to the north, to find persons who could speak of the singing , among slaves , as evidence of their contentment and happiness . It is impossible to conceive of a greater mistake . Slaves sing most when they are most unhappy. The songs of the slave represent the sorrows of his heart ; and he is relieved by them, only as an aching heart is relieved by its tears. At least, such is my experience. I have often sung to drown my sorrow, but seldom to express my happiness. Crying for joy , and singing for joy, were alike uncommon to me while in the jaws of slavery. The singing of a man cast away upon a desolate island might be as appropriately considered as evidence of contentment and happiness, as the singing of a slave; the songs of the one and of the other are prompted by the same emotion .

Author: Frederick Douglass
Year: 1845
Year evidence: Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave (1845)
Source: Quotes / 1840s / Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave (1845) — Ch. 2
Wikiquote: https://en.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=Frederick+Douglass&oldid=3976770
Attribution: Wikiquote contributors, Frederick Douglass; history: https://en.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=Frederick%20Douglass&action=history
License: Wikiquote contributor text: CC BY-SA 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/; underlying quotations may have separate copyright and be included under fair use. https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Wikiquote:Copyrights
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