Situational Irony In Frederick Douglass

Douglass used descriptions of events and circumstances to illustrate the dehumanization of African Americans by slave owners. However, Douglass utilized literary devices to create art and humanize himself and, by extension, all African Americans. Douglass often wrote analogies in his work. Douglass stated that physical violence “was the blood-stained gate, the entrance to the hell of slavery,” thereby comparing physical violence to a gateway into slavery, which was like Hell. Hell is known to be a terrible place that nobody desires to go to. Slavery being compared to Hell shows how awful enslavement was to Douglass. This comparison allows Douglass’ audience to better understand just how terrible slavery was and how the impact of physical …show more content…
Situational irony is often used by writers to show incongruences between theory and reality. Douglass sometimes wished that he was illiterate and stupid so that he would not understand the breadth of the injustices against slaves. This is situationally ironic because most people believe that knowledge is a blessing and should be cherished. Unfortunately, Douglass revealed that having knowledge can be a curse when coupled with a lack of power. Douglass drew attention to a complicated facet of his life by using situation irony. Douglass also utilized juxtaposition to discuss different situations in life. He compared himself with ships and discussed the freedoms that ships had versus the restrictions that enslavement placed on Douglass, as ships were free to sail in the ocean. When he juxtaposed the observations that he made about ships with his own circumstances, Douglass was able to emphasize contrast between freedom and servitude. Finally, Douglass included personification of slavery as a person with “robes already crimsoned with the blood of millions, and even now feasting itself greedily upon our own flesh.” Douglass drew attention to the fact that slavery was difficult to appease because of greed that, presumably, slave owners had for money, power, and the flesh of more slaves. The fact that the robes of slavery are painted red by blood brings to attention the reality that slavery was a violent business. Douglass likely used personification in the hopes that readers would be better able to visualize the evils of slavery if it resembled a greedy figure. The variety of devices that Douglass utilized illustrates his vast knowledge about writing and therefore helps to humanize him and African