# Epigraph explained — Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom

> Chapter companion for Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom by William Craft.

## What happens

The epigraph quotes William Cowper's poem, asserting that slaves who breathe English air are instantly free, establishing the theme of freedom through English soil.

## Themes in this chapter

### Freedom and Liberty

The epigraph declares that breathing English air instantly frees slaves, framing freedom as an inherent right tied to English soil.

## Key lines

> Slaves cannot breathe in England: if their lungs Receive our air, that moment they are free; They touch our country, and their shackles fall.

Enslaved people cannot exist in England; the moment they inhale English air, they become free, and their chains drop away.

_The epigraph sets the thematic foundation for the narrative, linking physical arrival in England with liberation._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/running_a_thousand_miles_for_freedom_se/chapters/epigraph
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/running_a_thousand_miles_for_freedom_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/running_a_thousand_miles_for_freedom_se/chapters