Characteristics Of Fiction Versus Non-Fiction: Nat Turner's Confessions and Frederick Douglass' The Heroic Slave

Background Information

The names of Nat Turner and Frederick Douglass are remembered because of the fame that they earned as black Americans during pre-Civil War slave period. However, their names color the pages of history books for widely different reasons: Nat Turner led one of the greatest slave revolts in almost 150 years of slavery, while Frederick Douglass obtained his freedom and education, going on to become a renowned speaker, author, and public leader.

Nat Turner's insurrection in Southampton, Virginia in 1831 was a massacre of over sixty slaveholders and subsequently many slaves as Turner and his alliance of slaves joined together in protest of their enslavement. The story of the revolt, complete with its motives and facts, is recorded in a published document called Nat Turner's Confessions, written by a white lawyer upon interviewing Turner in prison after the insurrection. It is the most accurate and detailed document available on the revolt. Frederick Douglass, on the other hand, after gaining his freedom, published literary works that include his own narrative of his life and some short stories. One of his short stories is a fictional account of a slave revolt called The Heroic Slave. Although it is based on a real life slave revolt, Douglass' work is mostly literary creativity glorifying a strong black leader. By examining the non-fiction document on Turner's revolt and the fiction story written by Douglass, along with various aspects of the authors backgrounds, conditions under slavery, and education, this page compares and contrasts the fiction versus non-fiction characteristics of slave revolts.

We only know about the childhoods of Douglass and Turner through autobiography in Douglass' case and the brief history Turner gave his lawyer while in jail after the insurrection. Turner was born in Southampton County, Virginia in the year 1800. He mentions that his father escaped from slavery but he and his mother remained enslaved until his death. He is recorded as claiming that he was not ill-treated and that his masters were kind and placed confidence in him. Douglass, on the other hand, was born in Maryland and never knew his exact birth date or the identity of his father, who allegedly was a white man. He was separated from his mother while still an infant. He recalls being one of about thirty slaves under the authority of a very severe and cruel overseer. Little is known about Turner's childhood, but he relates memories of his having some kind of extraordinary perceptions that differentiated him from other people; this supposedly guided him to lead the rebellion.

Both Turner and Douglass could read and write. It is vague how Turner learned, but his use was mostly for religious purposes such as reading and teaching the Bible. The wife of Douglass' second master educated him. He felt self-motivated to learn because his master was so adamantly opposed to it; Douglass found ways to obtain his education without his master's knowing of it and he became well read, making the best use of his education. Turner's education was narrower and scanty compared to that of Douglass. For Douglass, it was through his education that he learned about opportunity and the free north, motivating him to seek freedom and use his education. Turner's education contributed to his discontent under slavery, but it was mainly his religious experiences that motivated his quest for freedom.

While Douglass eventually escaped to the north and became a prominent public figure, being the first African-American to hold high political positions, Turner devised a plan of rebellion based on his interpretations of his extrasensory "messages from prophets." He felt it was his calling to lead a movement for the freedom of his people. Unfortunately it ended in his early death and the death of many others, both white and black. About twenty years after Turner's revolt, Douglass published his short story as a free black man. There are many parallels between the early life of Turner and Douglass, but their experiences in early adulthood provide points of contrast for the comparison of slave revolts, whether in fiction or in fact.

Literary Comparison and Contrast

Virginia provides the setting for Douglass' fictional story The Heroic Slave. This location serves the purpose of providing a backdrop that closely resembles the reality of the time period thus enhancing the story's believability. But it also symbolizes the state of the country and the irony in America's moral values. America was founded on the moral ideas of the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all men, and demanded and fought for those rights for mankind. Many of these revolutionary men have hailed of Virginia, " She has been dignified by some the mother of statesmen…Her high position in this respect, has given her a high enviable distinction among her sister states,…" ( Douglass 37). History has shown that these ideals were not extended to the Negro by the late 1800's. " Let those account for it who can, but there stands the fact, that a man who loved liberty as well as did Patrick Henry,… --and who fought for it with valor as high, an arm as strong, …lives now only in the chattel records of his native State" ( Douglass 37). Douglass uses the difference between word and fact in Virginia to symbolize the irony of the whole nation.

The fictional piece by Douglass invokes factual and historical credibility through the setting of the revolt on the sea. On November 7, 1841, the slaves on the Creole took over the ship that was bound for the New Orleans slave market and sailed it to the British free port of Nassau. " Upon arrival, British authorities detained nineteen of the identified rebellion instigators. All remaining passengers, both crew and slave, with Madison Washington among them, were set free due to lack of evidence"(Sale 25). In part IV of the Heroic Slave Douglass recreates the actual slave revolt. Douglass uses the action of American Slave trading to again show the inconsistencies in American values. America condemns slave trading outside the boundaries of the United States, but inside there is an acceptance and respect for those that participate in what Douglass calls the "American Slave Trade"--shipping slaves from one part of America to the other. Douglass points out this inconsistency with the quote "… but which is neither shocked nor disturbed by a similar traffic carried on with the same motives and purposes, and characterized by even more odious peculiarities on the coast of our MODEL REPUBLIC" ( Douglass 69). Douglass believes the inconsistency in these moral ideas will be the fall of mankind and society.

The character of Madison Washington was based on the slave leader who led the actual rebellion on the Creole. Douglass constructs Madison as a man who embodies strong and dignified traits which are praised by both whites and blacks alike. Douglass' description of Madison focuses on the characteristics in which Madison possesses that make him a man, rather than as society sees him-as a slave. " Madison was of manly form… His broad mouth and nose spoke only of good nature and kindness…intelligent and brave…He had the head to conceive, and the hand to execute. In a word, he was one to be sought as a friend, but to be dreaded as an enemy" (Douglass 40).

The Heroic Slave is told through the eyes of Mr. Listwell, a white abolitionist. Mr. Listwell admires Madison and through him, Madison is portrayed as an honorable and heroic character. The characterization of Madison by Mr. Listwell aids in strengthening Madison's cause for obtaining freedom and justifying his actions in pursuit of that cause. " Here indeed is a man, … of rare endowments, a child of God, --guilty of no crime but the color of his skin,-- hiding away from the face of humanity…" ( Douglass 41). Listwell's character in the story is a model for abolitionist action. He aided Madison in giving him a place to sleep, providing clothing, money, and arranged for his voyage to Canada. Mr. Listwell's assistance ultimately enables Madison to obtain his freedom.

Nat Turner's Confessions begins with an account of Nat Turner's earliest childhood memories. Turner was deemed different from other children: many thought he was to be a prophet. He believed he had "uncommon intelligence"; his superior intellect yearned for learning and reflection on life ( Confessions 46). Turner's confidence in his superior intellect fostered his religious beliefs and devotion to the Lord. Through prayer the spirit speaks to Turner, and from these experiences he comes to believe that "…[He] was ordained for some great purpose in the hands of the almighty…"( Confession 46). Turner saw these revelations as a sign from God about his purpose on earth. In 1825, he saw the vision of "…white spirits and black spirits engaged in battle, and the sun darkened, the thunder rolled in the heavens, and blood flowed in streams- and (he) heard a voice saying, "Such is your luck, such you are called to see, and let it come rough or smooth, you must surely bare it" (Confession 46). This revelation convinces Turner that he must fulfill the work of the Lord, and he waits for the sign to commence the "great work" (Douglass 48). Turner's religious devotion and beliefs causes him to lead the Southampton slave revolt in 1831.

Nat Turner's Confessions was told to and written by Thomas R. Gray, a white lawyer in Southampton. In the foreword of the Confessions, Gray states his purpose in writing the confessions. It was to answer the "Public[s] curiosity…to understand the origin and progress of [the] dreadful conspiracy, and the motives which influence[d] its diabolical actors." (Greenberg 40). The "origin and motives" of the revolt stem from Turner's religious beliefs, and Gray uses this to portray Turner as a religious fanatic. For example, in the beginning of the Confessions, Turner is recorded as calling his religious beliefs as "enthusiasm": "In the nineteenth century, religious "enthusiasm" had negative connotations…" (Greenberg 9). By society Turner's actions are seen as insane. The majority of the interview presents Turner's religious fanaticism as the cause of the slave revolt. The justification of the slaves fight for liberty would give Turner and cohorts more credibility, but it is only briefly mentioned; when Turner asks Will how he came there, "His life was worth no more than others, and his liberty as dear to him. [Turner] asked him if he thought to obtain it? [Will] said he would, or loose his life" (Confession 48). If Turner's cause for the slave revolt had been based on the fight for freedom it would have provided a more understandable reasoning for his actions.

Douglass' fictional story The Heroic Slave serves as a political platform for the abolition of slavery. From setting to characters and events in the story it is constructed to further the cause of freedom for the Negro. The Heroic Slave discusses the inhumanity and immorality of slavery, issues that tended to be overlooked in debates of the abolition of slavery during that time. In contrast, the non-fiction document on Turner's revolt reflects the sympathies of its white authorship: the content uses Turner and his religious reasoning to depict black people as insane, fanatical, and barbaric. Clearly, understanding the viewpoint of the author is critical to knowing the bias between fictional and non-fictional depictions of slave revolts.

Responses To Slave Revolts: Fiction and Fact

The Confessions of Nat Turner is a very descriptive and powerful narrative that greatly impacted its audience. Turner presents a clear representation of what occurred during the slave revolt. The confession is a detailed description of Turner and his followers planning the revolt and the events that transpired during the revolt. Without remorse Turner tells the reader about entering the homes of white slave owners and killing men and women in their beds; they even returned to a home to kill an infant in her cradle. Turner's matter of fact reiteration of the events of the slave revolt shows the reader that he is not hiding from what he has done. He is not fearful of his punishment, but has accepted it as a result of his actions. While initially reading the narrative it becomes difficult for the reader to remember the brutalities of slavery because they are continually confronted with another shocking murder committed by Turner or his followers. The lack of remorse and fear displayed by Turner makes the reader question his morality. However, it is upon analysis of Turner's motives and feelings about his actions, that the reader is reminded of the brutalities of slavery. The reader can then begin to imagine what Turner must have experienced to lead him to this result.

Nat Turner's Confession had a large impact on both its white and African American audience. After Nat Turner's revolt, a northern white abolitionist by the name of William Lloyd Garrison began publication of the Liberator, an anti-slavery newspaper. Unfortunately, not all white citizens reacted with the same sympathy. In the South there was a large increase in slavery legislation. The southerners passed laws forbidding slaves to learn how to read or write, and southern states passed laws that prevented open discussion about the end of slavery. Southerners also prevented slaves and free African Americans, in the south, from gathering together for social or religious reasons when a white person was not present. Nat Turner's rebellion made slave life a little more inhuman, however, to the slaves it demonstrated that they were no longer going to accept slavery.

The Heroic Slave is a fictional story by Frederick Douglass. However, it is based on actual events which gives the story credibility. This story is also believable because it refers to the horrors of slavery as well as depicting the consequences of escape. Douglass depicts African Americans as intelligent and moral and deserving of freedom. This story reminds or introduces the reader to the fact that African Americans are human beings: capable of learning and having a family. Quote: "I felt myself in the presence of a superior man, one who, had he been a white man, I would have followed willingly and gladly in any honorable enterprise. Our difference of color was the only ground for difference of action." (The Heroic Slave-77) This reveals to the reader the importance to the white mans, the idea of being white and of racial purity. Although this man reveals that Madison was a smart and admirable man, he can not respect him because he is black.

slavery and abolition information

Facts on Turner's Revolt

References

Douglass, Frederick. The Heroic Slave. In Violence In the Black Imagination. Ed, Ronald T. Takaki. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.

Greenberg, Kenneth S., ed.The Confessions Of Nat Turner. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1996.

Sale, Maggie. "To Make The Past Useful: Frederick Douglass' Politics of Solidarity." Arizona Quarterly 52.3 (Autumn 1995):25-60. Online. Internet. 12 Nov 1998. Available: http://itech.fgcu.edu/faculty/wohlpart/alra/douglass.htm.