Human Nature In Narrative Of The Life Of Frederick Douglass By Edgar Allan Poe

Human nature can be defined in many ways. One trait that best defines human nature is being ambitious. This can be exhibited in the autobiography, “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” and “Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allan Poe. The authors use literary devices to support that being ambitious best defines human nature. In “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass”, Douglass is ambitious to learn and read while slavery still exists. The blacks were not given education as the white race were the superior ones. The blacks were treated cruelly and hardly were given food. As a result, Douglass was also ambitious to escape slavery and persuade some freedom. In “Masque of the Red Death”, a plague, Red Death, has been struck and has been killing people. Therefore, Prince Prospero hides in his abbey, trying to escape it. He is ambitious …show more content…
His response to it was that he threw a party for the wealthy, leaving the poor out to suffer. This can be demonstrated when he seals himself and his friends in his abbey while the Red Death spread. He describes his escape,”, When his dominions were half depopulated, he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, and with these retired to the deep seclusion of one of his castellated abbeys. This was an extensive and magnificent structure....A strong and lofty wall girdled it in. This wall had gates of iron.” (pg 4)To explain, he believes hiding behind his abbey will save him and his friends. He basically says that as long as he can lock himself into his luxurious palace, his "extensive and magnificent structure”, he is fine. He spends his time and money on parties instead of helping his people. He is ambitious to escape the Red Death as he only hides behind his walls and trying to ignore it. Overall, he decides to save himself and friends and leave his people to