Imagery In The Book Of Negroes

Hughes uses powerful imagery as he describes the most ostracized groups in American society from which this voice derives: the poor white man “fooled and pushed apart”, the black man “bearing slavery’s scars”, the red man “driven from his land”, and the immigrant “clutching” onto hope. He uses stirring metaphors, “slavery’s scars”, to relay the image of suffering experienced by these forgotten

Douglass uses vivid imagery to depict the gruesome and ungodly nature of slavery. For example, in chapter six, Douglass describes the death of his grandmother “…She stands-she sits-she staggers-she falls-she groans-she dies-and there are none of her children or grandchildren present, to wipe from her wrinkled brow the cold sweat of death…” (59) This quote helps the reader imagine the grandmothers death and how helpless she felt. The fact that the slaveholders made it impossible for her children to be there when she died, contributes to the inhumane image Douglass has already been painting throughout the

During the mid-19th century, the issue of slavery divided the nation between two firmly rooted camps, the southern slave owners and the northern abolitionists. As authors and activists attempted to shed light on the issue of slavery, they appealed to the millions of citizens who were in between camps, whether due to a lack of knowledge or lack of importance in their daily lives. The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is one such literary work that helped inform American citizens on the horrors of slavery, offering a first-hand account as Douglass rose from a slave to an educated free man. Within his narrative, Douglass describes his life as a slave and transition into American society with newfound freedom, highlighting the dehumanizing results of slavery. Furthermore, Douglass appeals to the three Aristotelian appeals throughout his novel, synthesizing the argument that slavery should be abolished. Specifically, Douglass makes use of vivid imagery that appeals to readers’ pathos, inciting horror in his audience at the sight of atrocities committed by slave owners. Moreover, Douglass references a number of prominent literary works when forming analogies between slavery and history, appealing to readers’ ethos by illustrating his education and increasing the credibility of his argument. Finally, Douglass utilizes a parallel sentence structure to appeal to readers’ logos by presenting his

Slavery is a disappointing example of inhuman behavior, a dark past in our history books. Two stories demonstrate the cruelty of slavery while living on a plantation. “Harriet Tubman” and “The People Could Fly” give two different encounters on the topic of slavery. “Harriet Tubman” is a biography and “The People Could Fly” is a historical fiction. Both would make one wonder, what is there to live for when freedom does not exist in your life? The two different genres of books are able to give readers an understanding of how heart-wrenching and depressing life of a slave was. Both show the family of slaves taking care of one another. They show the family bonds even though the slaves are going through harsh conditions

Resilience is a factor that drives her survival and ability to persevere as a result of being a victim of circumstances. It is through her knowledge that acquires over time that enables her to fight back and put herself into a role of power within an environment promoting her oppression. Her mother, Georgia, Fanta and Aminata’s strong wills shows how women can take control of their lives and that they are more than just housewife’s, that they can change the world by standing up for themselves and showing other women the impossible, thus creating a movement resulting in how Aminata tells her story to the Abolitionists and how she destroys the stereotypical gender roles. Thus concluding to The Book of Negroes as an example that portrays female women to be strong and brave. It is through her knowledge she acquires over time that enables her to fight back and put herself into a role of power within a harsh

In the pre-civil war era, slaves did not obtain any human rights so slave owners treated them in any manner they wanted, which often consisted of cruelty. Douglass uses this cruel simile to compare the escape from landowners to one from an inhumane animal. Further allowing for a visual interpretation that arose when these slaves escaped. Douglas uses creepy imagery to allow for the acknowledgement that slaves encountered and provoke the type of fear they faced upon the audience. In using both imagery and similes, Douglass grants the individuals a visualization of the risks these slaves took when they escaped to obtain their freedom, as well as creating remorse for the fear and cruel treating provoked.

To begin, Douglass uses imagery to describe the heart wrenching experience of a slave child on a plantation. Without adequate food or clothing, slave children begin the process of dehumanization. Denied blankets or beds, the children slept on the cold and damp floor and Douglass describes with horrid detail his “feet [being] so cracked with the frost, that the pen which [he is] writing might be laid in the gashes”(1836). This painful description creates empathy for a mistreated child whose only “crime” results from his birth to a black mother. In the most dehumanizing comparison, Douglass uses animal imagery to reveal the conditions and manner in which the children are fed. Douglass writes:

I fell silent. Georgia and I had caught two babies on the Appleby plantation, and they were still with their mothers.

In the exposition of The Book of Negroes one does not realize the amount of emotional turmoil the African people are about to face. At first glance the village of Bayo seems to be a

After the journey across the Atlantic Ocean occurs, the slaves on this particular ship are now forced to call America their new home. Many of these slaves are transported to different plantations and Aminata is taken to Robinson Appleby’s plantation. On the plantation, Aminata lives a life in which she works hard everyday, however, there comes a moment where she is stripped and she loses all that is important to her. “I screamed as I have never screamed before. I didn’t recognize myself. I had no clothes, no hair, no beauty, no womanhood.” (203). This conflict arises when Appleby realizes that Aminata has been seeing another slave, who Appleby does not own, and she is also pregnant (due to that other slave). Due to that, and Aminata’s attitude, Appleby decides to use her as a symbol of defiance and what happens when someone defies him. Aminata very desperate in wanting to get out of this situation. The reader can imagine her condition in their head as her having no control, no say, and her being in complete pain. This is all occurring as Master Appleby is stripping her down, burning her clothes and shaving her head. As the quote states, after this encounter, Aminata feels as if she owns nothing and feels like she is nothing. This is definitely not pleasant imagery but the author helps to put the reader in the position of Aminata. Explaining the overall condition of slaves at the time and showing how Aminata will later “get over this” and be accustomed to this reckless

In other words, Frederick Douglass does not hate nor blame the Christian Church, he loathes those who use it as an excuse to justify their actions. Their religion does not dictate their persona, there are good Christians and there are bad Christians.

Hughes’s descriptive writing prompts the reader to visualize strong images of oppression in America. The speaker provides an image of an extremely suppressed group of people in the statement: “I am the red man driven from the land” (Hughes 21). This simple phrase creates a picture of the Native Americans being driven from their lands and forced to live on undesirable land, and, as a result, this invites the reader to acknowledge their severe oppression. Similarly, the speaker mentions the people who were “torn from Black Africa’s strand” (Hughes 50). This generates an image of boats packed with a depressing amount of broken people, waiting to be sold into slavery. These visual examples portray the severity of the situation that many Americans found themselves in. These

In Langston Hughes' poem, "The Negro Speaks of Rivers", he examines some of the roles that blacks have played throughout history. Ultimately, the poem asserts that in every one of these aspects the black people have been exploited and made to suffer, mostly at the hands of white people. The poem is written entirely in first person, so there is a very personal tone, even though the speaker symbolizes the entire black race. The examples of each role cited in the poem are very specific, but they allude to greater indignities, relying on the readers' general knowledge of world history. To convey the injustice that has taken place, Hughes utilizes the symbolism of the

Douglass gives detailed anecdotes of his and others experience with the institution of slavery to reveal the hidden horrors. He includes personal accounts he received while under the control of multiple different masters. He analyzes the story of his wife’s cousin’s death to provide a symbol of outrage due to the unfairness of the murderer’s freedom. He states, “The offence for which this girl was thus murdered was this: She had been set that night to mind Mrs. Hicks’s baby, and during the night she fell asleep, and the baby cried.” This anecdote, among many others, is helpful in persuading the reader to understand the severity of rule slaveholders hold above their slaves. This strategy displays the idea that slaves were seen as property and could be discarded easily.

Slavery has always been the most dreadful phenomena of our world. Slavery, by itself looks so unusual and provokes mixed feelings from the heart of each person. In other words, slavery change a human being into a “thing” or even some type of consumer item. However, a fugitive slave, Frederick Douglass writes the novel called “The Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass” to reveal how the slavery system works. Douglass’ narrative resembles not so much an autobiography as a memoir. If we read this novel closely, women often appear not in a primary plot, but in a short passage and as a vivid images; specifically, an image of abused bodies. Douglass associates women with suffering. Also, he gives an understanding