“I hear frequent rustlings among the leaves; and being pretty sure they were snakes, I expected every instant to be stung by them.” (p. 50)
By this point of the narrative, the atmosphere began to shift into something more foreign and grim. Having been separated from his sister and extradited into parts unknown, the quote illustrates the narrator’s anguish and forthcoming sorrow. Having now finally realized the extent of his desolation at these alien captors, his acclimation to the journey ahead can be best exemplified by the tone of paranoia and fear surrounding the quote. As the narrator continues his account of the events unfolding, he tries to find any semblance of familiarity through the search of his sister. The narrative establishes a clear sense of danger and confusion through the narrator’s journey of slavery, incorporating the emotions tied to the perspective of a slave. The narrative also draws contrast between familial ownership and foreign ownership, and it is in this sense of continuous trade and transition that contributes to the narrator’s sense of endangerment – never knowing the next destination, the severity of his master, and the absence of stability.
