Mr. Listwell
A white farmer from Ohio who overhears Madison in a Virginia forest, becomes an abolitionist on the spot, and crosses his path twice more.
He wants to help Madison, and to make up for years of not caring about slavery.
The book
At a glance
- A farm in Ohio, with his wife and children
- A Virginia pine forest, spring 1835
Who they are in the book
Spoiler-freeListwell is the reader's stand-in. He is well meaning and brave in private, and cautious in public. Douglass gives him a name that describes his job in the story: he listens well.
How Mr. Listwell Is Portrayed
- The eavesdropperHe first appears hiding behind a fallen tree in a Virginia forest. He has long wanted to know what an enslaved person really thinks, and here is his chance.
- Converted in a morningHe decides on the spot to become an abolitionist and goes home to Ohio resolved to make up for his past indifference.
- A generous hostWhen Madison knocks at his door five years later, Listwell refuses to let him sleep in the barn and gives him the best room in the house.
- Willing to lose the farmOhio law punishes anyone who helps a fugitive, and a citizen has just lost all his property for it. Listwell says he will get Madison to Canada if it costs his farm.
- Quiet among slave tradersAt the Virginia tavern he lets the bar believe he is a slave buyer. The narrator says plainly that fear, not conscience, won out.
- The filesAt the Richmond wharf he slips three strong files into Madison's pocket, then disappears into the crowd.
Mr. Listwell quotes
From this hour I am an abolitionist.
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