--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Soon after he purchased me, Epps asked me…" description: "\"“Soon after he purchased me, Epps asked me if I could write and read, and on being informed that I had received some instruction in those branches of e..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/solomon-northup-12765_books_soon-after-he-purchased-me-epps-asked-me_2255082.jpg" --- # Soon after he purchased me, Epps asked me if I could write… ![“Soon after he purchased me, Epps asked me if I could write and read, and on being informed that I had received some instruction in those branches of education, he assured me, with emphasis, if he ever caught me with a book, or with pen and ink, he would give me a hundred lashes.” quote by Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/solomon-northup-12765_books_soon-after-he-purchased-me-epps-asked-me_2255082.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/solomon-northup-12765_books_soon-after-he-purchased-me-epps-asked-me_2255082.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f9b/solomon-northup-12765_books_soon-after-he-purchased-me-epps-asked-me_2255082.jpg) > ““Soon after he purchased me, Epps asked me if I could write and read, and on being informed that I had received some instruction in those branches of education, he assured me, with emphasis, if he ever caught me with a book, or with pen and ink, he would give me a hundred lashes.”” [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A slave owner threatened brutal punishment for any literacy, showing how oppression uses fear to suppress empowerment. **In simple terms:** Literacy was punished to keep slaves powerless. Key Takeaway Resist oppression by valuing education. Themes oppression education freedom Mood defiant somber Type historical inspirational When to use this quote - learning to read - advocacy - historical education - human rights work Key Concepts power dynamics human rights control Questions to Reflect On - How does literacy empower marginalized groups? - What risks do oppressors face when people become educated? A Different Perspective Even with education, systemic barriers persist. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ## Related quotes > [“Right.” He slowly stood up. “This is new territory for you. 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If no warranty is given, a close examination is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/unsoundness-in-a-slave-as-well-as-in-a-horse-detracts-materially-from/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“Blessed be sleep! It visiteth all alike, descending as the dews of heaven on the bond and free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/blessed-be-sleep-it-visiteth-all-alike-descending-as-the-dews-of/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [I can speak of slavery only so far as it came under my own observation - only so far as I have known and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/i-can-speak-of-slavery-only-so-far-as-it-came-under-my-own/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [I could not comprehend the justice of that law, or that religion, which upholds or recognizes the principle of slavery;](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/i-could-not-comprehend-the-justice-of-that-law-or-that-religion-which/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“I don't want to survive, I want to live.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/i-don-t-want-to-survive-i-want-to-live/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“Men may write fictions portraying lowly life as it is, or as it is not—may expatiate with owlish gravity upon the bliss of ignorance—discourse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/men-may-write-fictions-portraying-lowly-life-as-it-is-or-as-it-is-not/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [My sufferings I can compare to nothing else than the burning agonies of hell!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/my-sufferings-i-can-compare-to-nothing-else-than-the-burning-agonies/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [My back is thick with scars for protesting my freedom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/my-back-is-thick-with-scars-for-protesting-my-freedom/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“It is a mistaken opinion that prevails in some quarters that the slave does not understand the term - does not comprehend the idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/it-is-a-mistaken-opinion-that-prevails-in-some-quarters-that-the/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [At such times, the heart of man turns instictively towards his Maker. In prosperity, and whenever there is nothing to injure or make him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/at-such-times-the-heart-of-man-turns-instictively-towards-his-maker/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“let them behold him scourged, hunted, trampled on, and they will come back with another story in their mouths. Let them know the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-northup/let-them-behold-him-scourged-hunted-trampled-on-and-they-will-come/) [Solomon Northup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-northup/) > [“On the way, a great many demanded it, read it, and passed on. 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