Document A:
1. John Brown delivered this speech on the last day of his trial, after hearing the jury
pronounce him ‘guilty.’ He knew he would be sentenced to die. Given that context,
what does this speech say about him as a person?
2. Based on this document, do you think John Brown was a “misguided fanatic”? Why
or why not?
Document B:
1. What are two reasons why Douglass opposed John Brown’s plan to raid Harper’s
Ferry?
2. Douglass’s account is written in 1881, twenty-two years after the raid. Do you trust
his account? Why or why not?
3. Based on this document, do you think John Brown was a “misguided fanatic”? Why or
why not?
