Takaki 'No More Peck'o Corn'

1) Why were slaves thought of as 'child like'?
"'Slaves never become men or women,' a traveler in the South commented.  Slave masters frequently referred to adult blacks as 'grown up children,' or 'boys' and 'girls'.  Referring themselves as guardians, they claimed their slaves had to 'governed as children'"'(112).
       Slaves were thought of as children because they were not seen as equal to their white masters; they were often not properly educated like the whites, and their masters saw them as property that they owned ad controlled.  In the quote, it is evident that slave masters believe that the slaves need to practically be tamed, like animals.  In the whites' eyes, the blacks have nearly no potential to grow into something more than a laborer.

2) What is the difference between how southern and northern blacks were treated? 
"Very few blacks lived in the North.  They were 'free', for the northern states had abolished slavery after the American Revolution" (107).
"But masters also believed that strict discipline was essential and that power had to be based on fear" (111).
       Based on the quote, in the North, blacks were seen as 'free', but they were still mildly discriminated against and segregated; they could not vote and were often feared to be criminals.  The South, however, used blacks as slaves on plantations and other areas.  The quote states that some masters would be gentle and kind to their workers, while others were ruthless and strict with their slaves.  All in all, the North gave the blacks more freedom and liberty than the South, but in both, there was still discrimination and prejudice.

3) Why wasn't Fredrick Douglass allowed to read?
"'If you give a nigger an inch he will take an ell' he angrily lectured, 'learning will spoil the best nigger in the world'" (123).
       Fredrick Douglass was not allowed to read because his master forbade his wife to teach him any more lessons, for he saw it as dangerous.  He believed that teaching a black to read or learn was wrong and would go against society; blacks were not supposed to or allowed to be educated.  They were treated like dumb animals that should not be granted anything like learning.