Question

“what, to the american slave, is your fourth of july? i answer; a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. to him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciation of tyrants, brass - fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery.” evaluate the reasoning douglass uses in the passage by determining whether the conclusion is valid or invalid.

Explanation:

Douglass's reasoning is valid. He contrasts the celebration of freedom on the Fourth of July for white Americans with the reality of slavery for Black Americans. The conclusion that the celebration is a sham for slaves follows logically from the premise of ongoing injustice (slavery) during a time of national freedom - themed celebration. The rhetorical devices (parallelism, contrast) strengthen the logical connection between the nation's claims of liberty and the slave's experience of cruelty, making the conclusion that the celebration is hollow for slaves a valid inference from the presented evidence (the slave's constant victimization by injustice).

Answer:

The conclusion is valid.