I was born in Tuckahoe, near Hillsborough, and about twelve miles from Easton, in Talbot county, Maryland. I have no accurate kn
owledge of my age, never having seen any authentic record containing it. By far the larger part of the slaves know as little of their ages as horses know of theirs, and it is the wish of most masters within my knowledge to keep their slaves thus ignorant. I do not remember to have ever met a slave who could tell of his birthday. They seldom come nearer to it than planting-time, harvest-time, cherry-time, spring-time, or fall-time. A want of information concerning my own was a source of unhappiness to me even during childhood. The white children could tell their ages. I could not tell why I ought to be deprived of the same privilege. How does Douglass's presentation of the information in this portion of paragraph 1 help to advance his overall argument concerning slavery?
A) It makes the reader conclude that some slaves had it worse than others.
B) It makes the reader aware of the reasons why slavery was first put into practice in the American South.
C) It makes the reader see the dehumanization inherent in a slave being raised without knowing his birthday.
D) It helps the reader to understand the mentality by which a slaveowner justified separating families.
