Character Analysis Paper - Essay Example

The man was jailed, and after a few days died of cholera attack. Dick decides to free Tom one of his father slaves because he knew Tom was more enlightened than the rest. However, his father was reluctant because he knows Tom would finally escape ending up loosing his slaves. To accomplish his son wish, the father insisted on Grandison accompanying his son because he knew him as trustworthy hence could not try to escape. Then Dick traveled with Grandson to New York and Boston, where abolitionist’s movement were active.

Later, they moved to Niagara Falls and Canada where slaves were usually considered free. Although, there were numerous opportunities for Grandison to escape, he sticks with dick. He declines the offer by the abolitionists to escape. When all attempts Dick Owens had to ensure Grandison escape failed, he decided to enlist the help of a kidnapper. As a result, Grandison is kidnapped, and Dick manages to get rid of him. Dick finally returns home and marries Charity Lomax because he had accomplished her wish.

To their utter dismay, Grandison returns after four weeks though emaciated. Colonel welcomes him with celebration as he had shown his loyalty. He is even given a place as a house servant. However, after three weeks, Grandison and his family went missing. Colonel was disappointed. He relentlessly searched for them and lastly spotted them on a steamboat headed towards Canada, where they are free as slaves. In this short story, Grandison is depicted as an extremely loyal person, somehow ignorant, tolerant, selfless, but in a way, he is a tricky man with a sense of determination.

Grandison loyal nature is well highlighted in the story. When dick decides to take a slave with him on his trip to the north, he opts for Tom. However, his father Colonel Owen declines such offer because he knows Tom, not as a loyal person who would easily escape to freedom. Colonel Owen believes he has a good alternative for his request. Therefore, he chooses Grandison to accompany his son to the North because according to his own understanding, Grandison was loyal and would not fall prey to the abolitionist active in the north.

Colonel says to Grandison, “I am going to trust him in your hands, and I am sure you'll do your duty faithfully, and bring him back home safe and sound to old Kentucky"(Chesnutt 5). In fact, the notion of Colonel about loyal nature of Grandison is evident as Grandison accompanies Dick Owen to the North. Indeed, he declines the abolitionist’s attempt to help him to escape from his master. Then, Dick takes Grandison to Canada. In Canada, slaves were considered automatically free, and it was impossible to recapture them back to slavery.

However, Grandison continues to demonstrate his loyal nature even after Dick informed him about the true state of slavery in Canada. Dick says, “You are now in Canada, Grandison, where your people go when they run away from their masters. If you wished, Grandison, you might walk away from me this very minute, and I could not lay my hand upon you to take you back" (Chesnutt 9). In fact, Grandison appears to be worried when he looses sight of dick. This confirms the notion of Grandison as a loyal and a happy slave.

Secondly, Grandison is shown as an ignorant or rather an uneducated person. In fact, his ignorant nature allows Colonel Owen to view him as a loyal slave. Colonel believes that those people that are able to read have the potential of escaping from slavery and servitude. This was