8Of the many captivity stories or 'slave narratives' that emerged in the first half of the nineteenth century, the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is widely considered to be the most important. The author, known for his eloquence, brings the same mastery of the English language to his memoir. His book describes the events of his life and is considered to be one of the most influential pieces of literature to fuel the abolitionist movement of the early 19th century in the United States.