a) The three informative passages from which I might draw some final conclusion about the value of Douglass' ideas on education would most certainly be paragraph 1, 2, and 11. The shift from paragraph 1, which is supported with a vibrant depiction of a kind and warm-hearted lady master to an enraged demon. This, I believe, shows the current state of that period of time. I also found paragraph 11 influential for its first implication of the word, "abolition." The first sentence, "I often found myself regretting my own existence, and wishing myself dead," opens up this particular paragraph, giving the audience a sense of himself being honest about his own existence. As he goes on, Douglass briefly introduces his encounter with an Irishman who asked Douglass if he was a slave for life, and his pity reaction to Douglass' response. This particular paragraph also shows Douglass' fear against all white people, for their possibilities to use him as a slave, too.
All three paragraphs, 1, 2, and 11, illustrate important moments of Douglass' lifetime. As the essay, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, in chronological order, depicts a gradual change in the meaning of being a slave from his childhood to young adulthood, and therefore, these paragraphs show the value of his contribution on abolition.
b) The best-written paragraph in the essay, I believe, is the second paragraph. The paragraph before it, the first paragraph, provdides a vivid description of a kind-hearted lady master, the first master for Douglass. The first sentence of the paragraph, "my new mistress proved to be all she appeared when I first met her at the door,--a woman of the kindest heart and finest feelings" proves her to be a notable master. Yet, in the following paragraph, there appears a sudden reversal. Douglass depicts an abrupt shift in his master's character; she changes from the most benevolent and finest lady to an evil dictator, as Douglass portrays her alteration in the second paragraph. "The cheerful eye, under the influence of slavery, soon became red with rate; that voice, made all of sweet accord, changed to one of harsh and horrid discord..."
To me, this hasty, but clear transformation of his master showed what many white masters would ahve gone through, and the reality of a quick change in slavery and people's adaptation to it. In terms of rhetoric, Douglass succeeded in grasping the attention of his readers for briefly introducing the reality and the following problem of the current society.
c) Douglass, as he describes the harsh reality of his life, proves that due to the condition of his youth he had a hard time to learn to read and write, even with the help of Mr. and Mrs. Auld, who taught him the A,B,C's. His encounter with an Irishman also depicts a firmness in his desire to be able to read and write.
The scene on page 278, however, shows a too peaceful sight of him reading or writing at his library. Although his back is crouched and he seems lonely, his library, full of books and other literary works, seems to be overly sufficient for an African Americans of that time period. This, I blieve, contradicts his claim that he had so many difficulties learning to read and write.