What Are The Similarities Between Frederick Douglass And The Awakening

Past life experiences often influence and sculpt the plot of an author’s literary works. Frederick Douglass and Kate Chopin successfully integrate several literary conventions in The Narrative of Frederick Douglass and The Awakening, respectively, in order to convey how the characters in the novel are either suffering or have acquired their enlightenment. These moments of suffering oftentimes dig a path towards enlightenment.
Frederick Douglass successfully achieves his enlightenment in the form of freedom from his suffering, which is slavery. When asked to offer an explanation for how his hatred of freedom sparked a desire of freedom for him, Douglass responded with, “The thought of only being a creature of the present and the past, troubled

Throughout his story, Douglass talks about the worsening situations he is put in as time goes on. He witnesses the deaths of fellow slaves and he himself is put through abuse of all forms including physical, mental, and emotional. However, he sets himself apart from other slaves at the time due to his positive mindset. In his own words, he claims, “This living word of faith and spirit of hope departed not from me, but remained like ministering angels to cheer me through the gloom.” In this statement, he uses both a biblical allusion and a simile to his advantage through their utilization for delivering his point. He compares his never wavering faith and hope which stay with him through the tough times he is facing to being similar to ministering angels who are known in the Bible to guide, comfort, and protect people. Thus he is accrediting faith and hope to be the two reasons why he saw the other side of suffering, or slavery, which presented itself in the form of freedom. This enlightenment of freedom is the result of the comfort and the invisible shield of protection that these two factors provided. The two conventions helped deliver this point by providing a valid comparison to biblical figures which provides an insight into both Douglass’ Christian characterization as well as helping provide a tone of determination and positive spirit to

After eavesdropping on his white owner as to why education was forbidden for slaves, Douglass came to a shocking realization. “These words sank deep into my heart, stirred up sentiments…, and called into existence an entirely new train of thought… I now understood… the white man’s power to enslave the black man… From that moment, I understood the pathway from slavery to freedom.” The imagery in this excerpt helps discuss how deeply the words affected Douglass and how, in turn, these words allowed him to come to the most life-changing moment of his life. In this moment, by eavesdropping and allowing the words of his white master to fester in his soul, Douglass came to know how the white man had power over the black man. By knowing the information of what caused his suffering, Douglass easily knew how to reverse the suffering he was facing into the enlightenment that freedom from slavery poses. This is a profound, and thus efficacious, moment in the text of the novel considering the fact that it was the turning point from hopelessness to optimistic aspiration in Douglass’