We are living in an era where media depiction of reality can be far from the truth, and portrayals of Black Lives Matter are polarized by different news stations. With these portrayals comes underlying agendas, and with the current state of media, it is crucial as a citizen recognize these underlying purposes and portrayals to ensure that social change within the United States continues to progress. While we still struggle with the depiction of African American’s, it is nothing new as it has been evident in literature for hundreds of years, and it is seen here in these two works of literature. Simms’s “Caloya” and Fredrick Douglass’s Narrative both utilize the antagonists, Mingo in “Caloya” and slave owners in Narrative, however, “Caloya” focuses…show more content… In Mingo’s quest to do so, readers become aware of his high sex drive, infidelity, and cunning nature. Additionally, Simms details the extent of which Colonel Gillison goes through to control Mingo’s habits and maintain civility upon his plantation. Conversely, Douglass recalls the atrocities he has witnessed or endured in his life under slave owners. More specifically, Douglass recounts the whippings and sexual acts carried out by the hands of the slave owners to illustrate the evilness and sexuality of slave…show more content… He describes Mingo as, “Mingo was a Hercules to the great majority of these: and, with his arms akimbo, his head thrown back, one foot advanced, and his hands, at intervals, giving life to his bold, and full-toned utterance…” (366). This enables readers to conjure images of Mingo before understanding his true nature, which further perpetuates the natural savage and sex-hungry portrayal. However, Mingo’s sexual nature becomes apparent when he comes across Caloya while grappling with Knuckles, her husband, along the banks of the Red Gulley. Once Mingo see’s Caloya, his mood immediately changes from that of wrath to pacific as he is sexually aroused by Caloya’s presence. Simms follows this encounter by enlightening readers of Mingo’s sexual tendencies, “Nor were his sentiments towards the sex confined to those of his master’s plantation only. He penetrated the neighboring estates with the excursive and reckless nature of the Prince of Troy, and, more than once...” (373). Additionally, Simms attributes Mingo’s sexual nature to race on the following page when he writes, “He was presumptuous enough – surely there are no white men so! – to image that it was scarcely possible for any of the other sex, in their sober senses, to withstand him.” (374) By including the part, “surely there are no white men so!”, Simms infers that the sexuality of white men is different from that of Mingo’s and black men.
