Final answer:
Charles W. Chesnutt depicted African-American characters with complexity and intelligence, defying the 'happy darkies' stereotype. In 'The Passing of Grandison', 'passing' represents strategic subservience, leading to Grandison's escape to freedom, highlighting the cunning of slaves and criticizing the ignorance of their masters.
Step-by-step explanation:
Charles W. Chesnutt, an African-American writer from the Realist literary movement, used his writings to subvert the romanticized concept of the 'happy darkies' trope prevalent in Local Color fiction of the post-Civil War South by portraying African-American characters with complexity, intelligence, and humanity. Specifically, in his story 'The Passing of Grandison', Chesnutt employs the concept of 'passing'—here referring not just to the act of a light-skinned African-American passing as white, but also to the act of strategically displaying subservience to maintain an appearance of harmlessness. Grandison, the protagonist, uses his perceived docility to deceive his master, Colonel Owens, and plan a successful escape with his family to freedom. Chesnutt's storytelling effectively demonstrates the craftiness and resilience of his African-American characters, and critiques the obliviousness and arrogance of the white slave-owning class.