Read the excerpt from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.After the valuation, then came the division. I have no language to express the high excitement and deep anxiety which were felt among us poor slaves during this time. Our fate for life was now to be decided. We had no more voice in that decision than the brutes among whom we were ranked. A single word from the white men was enough--against all our wishes, prayers, and entreaties--to sunder forever the dearest friends, dearest kindred, and strongest ties known to human beings.
Answer
A
entertain the reader with a suspenseful story.
B
explain the difference between “valuation” and “division.”
C
argue that no one else can understand his pain.
D
inform the reader about the cruelty of slavery.
Explanation
Douglass describes enslaved people being valued and divided without having any say in what happened to them. The comparison to “brutes” and the threat of separating families and friends show the cruelty and dehumanization of slavery. Although the scene creates anxiety, its main purpose is to inform readers about slavery’s cruelty, not simply to entertain them with suspense.
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