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Deception In Charles Chestnutt's The Passing Of Grandson

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Deception In Charles Chestnutt's The Passing Of Grandson
God uses the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. A whole lot of things are relative, but some things are actually true. In the short story, “The Passing of Grandison” author Charles Chestnutt explores the irony of the situation by creating a character like Grandison to be driven by deception and determination to obtain freedom for him and his family. There are many examples of deception and determination shown within the “The Passing of Grandison”. Grandison plays the role of a trickster. He confirms his master beliefs of slaves being loyal and conforming to society’s expectations. He wears a mask to pass as a happy, illiterate, loyal slave to his master in order to execute his plan of escape. Author Viktor Osinubi states in his article, “ Privileging the African Metaphysics of Presence in American Slave Culture: the Example of Charles W. Chesnutt's "The Passing of Grandison", “the parallels between the adventures of a trickster figure and Grandison's tortuous scheme for freedom …show more content…
As a result of Grandison’s return, he was passed as a faithful slave and believed to be abolitionist-proof. The constructed social identity as defined by Colonel resulted in Grandison earning his trust. However, Grandison’s personal identity outwitted his master’s expectations. Author Martha J. Cutter states in her article, “An Intricate Act of Passing: Strategies of Racial and Textual Subversion in Charles Chesnutt's 'The Passing of Grandison.', “what becomes apparent, then, by the story's end is that Grandison has been skillfully passing as a kind of Sambo-like figure--a contented, ignorant, child-like, happy slave who appears to believe the distorted visions of the world put forward by his white
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