Compare and Contrast the Representation of the Figure of...

Compare and contrast the representation of the figure of the slave, and of the theme of freedom, in Douglass’s â€Å"Narrative† and Twain’s â€Å"Adventures of Huckleberry Finn†. The two novels that I am studying are â€Å"The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn† by Mark Twain, and â€Å"The Narrative of Frederick Douglass – Written by Himself†. Both these texts give us an insight into the life of slavery and the societal beliefs of the South in America in the nineteenth century. The theme of freedom and the figure of the slave are two common aspects of the book that I shall be looking at. Frederick Douglass’ text gives us a first person account of life as a slave and in Huck Finn we get an account of a slave’s life through the eyes of a young southern boy.†¦show more content†¦An issue relating to this is the contrast that I noticed in the figure of the slave in both Douglass and Jim, was the issue of language. Douglass’ speech in the text is one of high standard. He speaks with the manner of a well educated white man, however in comparison Jim speaks as other would expect him to speak in a thick southern accent and with grammatical incorrect language – â€Å"No but I ben rich wunst, and gwyne to be rich again. Wunst I had foteen dollars, but I tuck to specalat’n’, en got busted out† (p43). Twain depicts the slave as the public would normally see the slave. Douglass on the other hand didn’t speak like the public expected him to and he spoke with grace and honour. Douglass began to turn the tide around and help the public realise that slaves are indeed just as intelligent as the normal public. The theme of freedom is an obvious one in both texts. Frederick and Jim both run away from their owners to gain freedom from the harsh reality of slave life. For Douglass freedom came with literacy. When Douglass began to read and write it opened up his eyes to the life of slavery and just how wrong it was. However he often wondered if this was a gift or a curse â€Å"I would at times feel that learning to read had become a curse rather than a blessing† (p24). He realised the true cruelty of the slave life and when he learned that his ancestors were stolen and brought to another country his anger is not missed – â€Å"I