--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Frederick Douglass, who had entertained…" description: "\"“Frederick Douglass, who had entertained hopes for the Haitian post, graciously conceded defeat. “Your appointment,” he told Bassett, “is a grand achie..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83c/ron-chernow-1189_failure_frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-h_3234372.png" --- # Frederick Douglass, who had entertained hopes for the… ![“Frederick Douglass, who had entertained hopes for the Haitian post, graciously conceded defeat. “Your appointment,” he told Bassett, “is a grand achievement for yourself and for our whole people.” quote by Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83c/ron-chernow-1189_failure_frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-h_3234372.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83c/ron-chernow-1189_failure_frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-h_3234372.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83c/ron-chernow-1189_failure_frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-h_3234372.png) > ““Frederick Douglass, who had entertained hopes for the Haitian post, graciously conceded defeat. “Your appointment,” he told Bassett, “is a grand achievement for yourself and for our whole people.”” [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Frederick Douglass acknowledges defeat in a political appointment, framing it as a personal and collective achievement. **In simple terms:** Douglass sees the appointment as a win for himself and his people. Key Takeaway Recognize collective progress in setbacks. Themes politics leadership history Mood thoughtful optimistic Type historical inspirational When to use this quote - career advancement - civil rights movements - political negotiations - community organizing Key Concepts recognition humility collective advancement Questions to Reflect On - What broader impacts does this appointment have? - How does personal success translate to community benefit? A Different Perspective The quote may overlook broader systemic issues beyond the appointment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Frederick douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frederick-douglas/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) ## Related quotes > [“Summing up Grant’s career, Frederick Douglass wrote: “In him the Negro found a protector, the Indian a friend, a vanquished foe a brother, an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/summing-up-grant-s-career-frederick-douglass-wrote-in-him-the-negro/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. —Frederick Douglass”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timber-hawkeye/it-is-easier-to-build-strong-children-than-to-repair-broken-men/) [Timber Hawkeye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timber-hawkeye/) > [“Find out what any people will quietly submit to, and you have found out the exact measure of injustice and wrong that will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adbanyan/find-out-what-any-people-will-quietly-submit-to-and-you-have-found/) ADBanyan > [“A man is worked upon by what he works on,” Frederick Douglass once said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/a-man-is-worked-upon-by-what-he-works-on-frederick-douglass-once-said/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [“Sincerely and earnestly hoping that this little book may do something toward throwing light on the American slave system, and hastening the glad day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/sincerely-and-earnestly-hoping-that-this-little-book-may-do-something/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [Growing up, I read all three of Frederick Douglass' autobiographies by the time I was 12.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tubbs/growing-up-i-read-all-three-of-frederick-douglass-autobiographies-by/) [Michael Tubbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tubbs/) > [“Frederick Douglass (born Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, (born circa 1818 – February 20, 1895) was an American abolitionist, women's suffragist, editor, orator, author, statesman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/frederick-douglass-born-frederick-augustus-washington-bailey-born/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“Mr. Johnson had just been reading the "Lady of the Lake," and at once suggested that my name be "Douglass." From that time until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/mr-johnson-had-just-been-reading-the-lady-of-the-lake-and-at-once/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [In every era going back to Lincoln with Frederick Douglass, presidents talk to those that were leading at that time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-sharpton/in-every-era-going-back-to-lincoln-with-frederick-douglass-presidents/) [Al Sharpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-sharpton/) > [Frederick Douglass had to teach himself how to read before standing up to defeat slavery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-williams/frederick-douglass-had-to-teach-himself-how-to-read-before-standing/) [Juan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-williams/) > [...Slavery appears such a relatively mild business that one begins to wonder why Frederick Douglass and so many others ever tried to escape.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinesh-d-souza/slavery-appears-such-a-relatively-mild-business-that-one-begins-to/) [Dinesh D'Souza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinesh-d-souza/) > [“Frederick Douglass, former slave, extraordinary speaker and writer, wrote in his Rochester newspaper the North Star, January 21, 1848, of “the present disgraceful, cruel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/frederick-douglass-former-slave-extraordinary-speaker-and-writer/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [They cannot degrade Frederick Douglass. The soul that is within me no man can degrade. I am not the one that is being degraded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/they-cannot-degrade-frederick-douglass-the-soul-that-is-within-me-no/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“Sensing an abandonment of Reconstruction, Frederick Douglass wondered what good abolition had been for the black man if “having been freed from the slaveholder’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/sensing-an-abandonment-of-reconstruction-frederick-douglass-wondered/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“On February 7, President Johnson met at the White House with five black leaders, including Frederick Douglass, who came to lobby for a civil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/on-february-7-president-johnson-met-at-the-white-house-with-five/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) ## More by Ron Chernow > [“In other words, Julia still believed in the beneficial effects of tobacco long after her husband had likely died from it. Even grimacing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/in-other-words-julia-still-believed-in-the-beneficial-effects-of/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“Right before his inauguration, he received a Quaker delegation and asked them to nominate Indian agents from their members. “If you can make Quakers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/right-before-his-inauguration-he-received-a-quaker-delegation-and/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“Grant roomed with Fred Dent, who also singled out Grant as “the clearest headed young man I ever saw . . . He always wanted to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/grant-roomed-with-fred-dent-who-also-singled-out-grant-as-the/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [The richly cadenced prose is hypnotic, the research prodigious, the analysis acute, the mood spellbinding, and the cast of characters mythic in scale. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/the-richly-cadenced-prose-is-hypnotic-the-research-prodigious-the/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“Hamilton has often been extolled as the exponent of a rational foreign policy based on cool calculations of national self-interest. But his April 14…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/hamilton-has-often-been-extolled-as-the-exponent-of-a-rational/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“While the folks at home embraced him as an improbable hero, Washington was denigrated in England as a reckless young warrior and in France…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/while-the-folks-at-home-embraced-him-as-an-improbable-hero-washington/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“the immorality of slavery became patently clear that spring. He had acquired from Colonel Dent the mulatto slave named William Jones who had worked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/the-immorality-of-slavery-became-patently-clear-that-spring-he-had/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“As his life steadily unraveled, he pawned his gold watch and chain for $20 on December 23, 1857, to purchase Christmas presents for his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/as-his-life-steadily-unraveled-he-pawned-his-gold-watch-and-chain-for/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“Grant had overwhelmingly won the electoral vote, and had garnered the largest popular majority of the century, nearly 56 percent of the vote, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/grant-had-overwhelmingly-won-the-electoral-vote-and-had-garnered-the/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“The chief quartermaster on the West Coast, Robert Allen, an old friend of Grant’s, learned he was holed up in a cheap miner’s hotel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/the-chief-quartermaster-on-the-west-coast-robert-allen-an-old-friend/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“Returning to his Manhattan town house on Christmas Eve, Grant, sixty-one, pivoted to hand the driver a holiday tip when he slipped on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/returning-to-his-manhattan-town-house-on-christmas-eve-grant-sixty/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“When he bet Julia that she wouldn’t dare to descend into the mine, located seventeen hundred feet below, it roused her fighting spirit and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/when-he-bet-julia-that-she-wouldn-t-dare-to-descend-into-the-mine/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“Consequential to the election outcome were the many private contacts in the capital between southern Democrats and Hayes’s northern Republican supporters. At Wormley’s Hotel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/consequential-to-the-election-outcome-were-the-many-private-contacts/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“The trial wasn’t the finest hour of American justice as the treatment of the prisoners seemed medieval in its barbarism. Almost all of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/the-trial-wasn-t-the-finest-hour-of-american-justice-as-the-treatment/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) > [“he warned that progressive accumulation of debt “is perhaps the NATURAL DISEASE of all Governments. And it is not easy to conceive anything more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/he-warned-that-progressive-accumulation-of-debt-is-perhaps-the/) [Ron Chernow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) [Explore all 276 Ron Chernow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Rhiannon's Law #28: If you're going to fuck up, be sure to fuck up good and proper. Nothing makes failure acceptable, so you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rhiannon-s-law-28-if-you-re-going-to-fuck-up-be-sure-to-fuck-up-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure is a part of life and you have to learn to deal with it. Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Frederick Douglass, who had entertained hopes for the Haitian post, graciously conceded defeat. “Your appointment,” he told Bassett, “is a grand achievement for yourself and for our whole people.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ron Chernow" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-hopes-for-the-haitian-post/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Failure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-hopes-for-the-haitian-post/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83c/ron-chernow-1189_failure_frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-h_3234372.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83c/ron-chernow-1189_failure_frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-h_3234372.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83c/ron-chernow-1189_failure_frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-h_3234372.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Frederick Douglass, who had entertained hopes for the Haitian post, graciously conceded defeat. “Your…” — Ron Chernow", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ron Chernow", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-chernow/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Frederick Douglass, who had entertained hopes...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-hopes-for-the-haitian-post/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-chernow/frederick-douglass-who-had-entertained-hopes-for-the-haitian-post/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```