Harriet Jacobs and Frederick Douglass: The Lives of Two Slaves - Essay Example

Douglass makes use of flowery language and big words. This style was probably very convincing in the nineteenth century, although to a modern reader, it is a little hard to read. The description of what happened to him is very sad, and it is still a compelling argument against slavery, but the language does make everything feel a little distant and unreal at times. Jacobs’s writing style makes readers sympathize very closely with her, especially as a mother. Everything in her story feels very real and immediate.

It is easy to feel what she is feeling as the story goes along. She uses much simpler language, which comes off as more modern, and that makes it a great deal easier to read. It puts the reader in her shoes and makes the audience really feel what slavery was like. Of the two narratives, I feel that Jacobs’s is more powerful. Douglass’s was beautiful and poignant, but the immediacy of Jacobs’s storytelling makes it more real.