Perhaps the most notable of the slave autobiographies is the Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, written by himself, with its elegant simplicity and carefully crafted account of the slave-dominated South . Robert B. Septo focuses on Douglass's potpourri of writing in various styles in his essay "Narration, Authentication, and Authorial Control in the Fiction of Frederick Douglass of 1845." Using syncretic phrasing, introspective analysis, internalized documentation, and participant observation, Septo argues that Douglass reveals his complexity through relatively simple form. Rafia Zafar argues that Douglass should be considered a counterpart to Benjamin Franklin, since Douglass embodies the ideal American that Franklin described in his Autobiography. Zafar claims that the two famous men are more similar than one might think and that they had many life experiences in common, especially the process of self-education. Just as Franklin claimed to be a self-made man, so Douglass was the sole motivator in his quest for literacy. Another unifying factor according to Zafar is that both men were slaves to someone, although he does not name Franklin's "relative." Douglass, however, did not hold back from revealing the names of his masters, indeed, as Septo claimed, he spoke of his masters rather astutely. The “acerbic pun” with which Douglass called Mr. Severe and Mr. Freeland is an intriguing example of his syncretic phrasing (Septo 185). Zafar also stated that Douglass followed Franklin's model set forth in his Autobiography, where he imposed on himself the importance of personal freedom and emphasized hard work and industry. William L. Andrews continues the examination of Douglass's identity formation Douglass and... middle of paper... life; he also demonstrates through his mastery of classical rhetoric and oratory his value as a literate human being” (Cook and Tatum 55). Through learning, Douglass gained a confidence that fueled his motivation to become the greatest self-made American citizen of his time. While there is controversy over the details of Douglass's impact, one cannot argue with William W. Cook and James Tatum's statement, "The narrative gave readers of his time not only the image of a transformed black man by literacy, but the self-portrait of a superior black man possessing great thoughts and noble feelings, empowered by learning” (Cook and Tatum 55) Conclusion: Just as the Norton Anthology argues, “it would be difficult to exaggerate the importance for Americans across the color line of Douglass's exemplary career as a champion of human rights" (Levine 1174).