Frederick Douglass was a writer, orator, and activist, and one of American history’s most influential and inspirational figures. Born into slavery around 1817, in Maryland, Douglass learned to read and write while still enslaved as a young man. This ability—along with his relationship with Anna Murray, the free woman he would eventually marry—inspired and aided his successful escape from slavery in 1838. It is largely this story that he details in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an autobiography of Douglass’ early life in slavery and his journey out of bondage.