How Does Edward P Jones Present Moses In The Known World

In the novel The Known World, Edward P. Jones reveals the character of Moses as a man who is caring, diligent, and loves the natural world. Moses was a man born into slavery who worked hard in the fields.When his master died, all that was left was a mule, and the memory of reds and oranges laid out in waves across the horizons. The author uses many literary elements to reveal the character of Moses such as point of view, selection of detail, and imagery. The imagery in the novel is essential to the revelation of the character of Moses. The strong and vivid images of nature not only emphasize his love for nature but also show that he himself has become a part of it. The author states “He had been in the fields for all of fourteen hours” and “He paused before leaving the fields as the evening quiet wrapped itself about him”. These examples furthermore highlight

The novel is written in third-person point of view. The third person point of view not only shows the reader Moses’s inner thoughts but it also displays everything that is going on with nature and everybody else's thoughts. The author states “The evening his master died he worked again well after he ended the day for the other adults” and “Believing he was alone, he smiled”. These details told by this point of view go into more detail than if Moses was stating it himself. The readers not only see how Moses actions affect himself but the things and people around him. The death of his master clearly affected him. This is shown when the author states “finally freed himself of the ancient and brittle harness that connected him to the oldest mule his master owned”. This highlights the connection that Moses and his master had which wouldn't have been as emphasized if it was told in Moses’s point of view. This furthermore displays his thoughtful and sensitive nature of how much he cared for him and how he still thinks about