Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce, Frederick Douglass, and Kate Chopin Essay Example

compared to that of Bierce and Chopin as his Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is an autobiographical essay, not a fictional work. Instead of relying on literary devices, Douglass often utilizes rhetoric techniques, particularly pathos, to persuade readers that slavery is detrimental to both slaves and slaveholders. At the start of his Narrative, the author evokes compassion for slaves by recounting his separation from his mother at an early age and the rarity of their reunions.

On receiving news of his mother's death, he expresses feeling similar emotions to those he would have experienced upon the death of a stranger. The lack of affection allowed for young slaves denies them the fundamental love and nurturing that even animals receive from their parents. This detachment between mothers and their children illuminates the miserable state of slavery and elicits sympathy from the audience, effectively demonstrating how slavery strips black individuals of their humanity.