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Joseph Ebron

Mrs. Field

LNG 405

22 October 2010

Styles

Slavery, an act against the free will of an individual, prompted strength in the life of

Frederick Douglass, and he displays his strength through his straightforward writing style as he

uses heavy diction, powerful tone, and appeals to logic to show his transition from being a slave

to becoming a man. In Narrative Douglass utilizes heavy diction to express the spiteful nature of

his overseer, Mr. Covey, as he describes his actions as “savage” and with “fierceness”. This

word choice gives the reader the image of the day-by-day toil of Douglass and how hard it was

for him to work with a savage individual such as Mr. Covey. Douglass uses disheartening diction

and tone to explain how his spirit as he felt that his “natural elasticity was crushed, [his] intellect

languished, the disposition to read departed, and the cheerful spark that lingered about [his] eye

died” (Douglass). This statement shows that Douglass really felt like the weight of the world was

on his shoulders and his burdens were slowly taking him over. Douglass later states that “You

have seen how a man was made a slave; you shall see how a slave was made a man” (Douglass).

Douglass appeals to the logic of the reader to show that his true transition into a man will take

place soon through a life changing experience. As Douglass describes his event with factual

evidence and great detail, he later illustrates his transition as his “long-crushed spirit rose,

cowardice departed, bold defiance took its place…the day passed forever when I would be a

slave in fact” (Douglass). Positive diction, contrasting his initial negative word choice, describes

how Douglass overcame his burdens and finalized his transition from a slave to a man. The
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factual writing style of Douglass gives the reader his straightforward purpose of changing from a

slave to that of a man.

From Incidents of a Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs conveys a vast feeling of emotion

as she illustrates the hardships of being in slavery and the true price of freedom through the use

of emotional diction and appeals to emotion. Jacobs’s emotion is showed as she first hides from

her master and thinks how her children “would be made to suffer for her fault” (Jacobs). Her

stance as a mother gives her and emotional attachment to her children, like any other mother, and

her past dealings with her master, who before made sexual advances, threatens her personal

security. Jacobs appeals to the emotion of the reader as she prays for her children and gives them

a kiss as she decides to leave them. The reader obtains a sense of sadness as she has no choice

but to run away for her freedom, and she has to leave her beloved children behind which no

mother wants to do. Jacobs also appeals to the reader’s emotion as she cries when she hears

about her children begging to see her while they are in jail. This sad circumstance shows how

Jacobs had to be strong for her family through all the emotional toil she endures as she fights for

freedom. Harriet Jacobs shows through her emotional writing style how an individual can

overcome many difficult obstacles, emotionally and physically, to obtain the goal they strive for.