[1] It is written in a "polemical" style typical of fugitive slave narratives and details the abuses he experienced while enslaved.
[2] Unlike most fugitive slave narratives, however, Watson's memoir recounts his self-doubt rather than projecting an image of heroism.
[4][5] Watson was born in 1813 in Virginia, and at the age of 8 he was taken away from his family and forced to serve a cruel slave master.
[5][11] While in Mississippi a "gentleman from Boston", an abolitionist probably part of the Underground Railroad, encouraged him to seek his freedom to the North.
He suggested boarding a ship and prepared him for any questions that the captain or other white people could possibly have, Watson decided to take the boat to his freedom.