My Bondage and My Freedom: Part I.-- Life as a Slave. Part II.-- Life as a Freeman
New York and Auburn: Miller, Orton & Mulligan, 1855. First edition, first printing, first state. Engraved frontispiece portrait and two plates. Original cloth over boards. Octavo. [i-v], vi-xxxi, [xxxii], (33)-467 pages.
This autobiography by Frederick Douglass (his second) is one of the most important slave narratives of the 19th century and a cornerstone of African-American literature. It presents a more detailed account of his life as a slave and his path to emancipation than is found in his first autobiography of 1845. Published just 17 years after his escape from slavery on Maryland's Eastern Shore and 3 years after Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin," it had a major impact on the abolition movement at the time.
This copy is from the first printing of 5,000 copies, which sold out in 2 days. More importantly, it is the first state of that printing as determined by Blassingame, et al, in "The Frederick Douglass Papers, Series Two: Autobiographical Writings, Volume 2: Bondage and Freedom." This is significant because there are 5 distinct states found among the various 1855 printings of "My Bondage and My Freedom," totaling some 16,000 copies. Blassingame, et al, identify seven points of issue that identify the first printing in its earliest state, and this copy contains all seven of these points. This copy was bound without publisher ads at rear.
An unrestored copy in its original binding.
Ref. BLOCKSON 9717; SABIN 20714; BLASSINGAME pp. 285-298.
Bound in original green cloth over boards with spine titled in gilt, both boards stamped in blind, pale yellow endpapers. Binding shows moderate extremity wear. Rear endpaper is split along inner hinge, but hinge itself remains sound. There is some dampstaining to left margin of frontispiece portrait, similar staining in varying degrees to bottom margin of interior leaves, not affecting the text. Prior owner name pencilled on title page, scattered foxing and browning inside. One plate lacks its tissue guard. Leaf 369/370 has a curved tear and some associated wrinkling to the fore edge, not touching the text. Gilt spine title dulled. A good copy overall, impressively unrestored.
Item #1630
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