Olaudah Equiano Book Report
The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, establishes a profound tone within the text, writing of truth and an unexaggerated account of Equiano’s life journey. Equiano’s tone of writing is humble. The purpose of the book is not for his own vanity or pride but to capture the power his faith which guided him through slavery until the point of his freedom. As the chapters unfold, Equiano establishes an authentic account of his plan to abolish the horrors of slavery by creating physical written text to illustrate the magnitude of the abuse and suffering slaves endured. The book maintains his reports of impassioned and emotionally centred rants against the slave trade industry. Along with many strong stances in regards to the so
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called ‘christian-like’ people who forced persons like Equiano into slavery. His journey beginning from being free than forced into slavery just to have to regain his right to freedom that he had once occupied. Equiano opposes the religious and economic grounds that Europeans believed slave trade was acceptable. The value of this text is that it brings this unique perspective of the abolitionist movement from an actual enslaved African. A perfect position to accurately personify the reality of the slave trade. The Interesting Narrative effectively advocates for abolition, since Equiano was one of the rare many slave who encompassed the ability to read and write the language of the men and women he wished to reach out to. This paper will highlight how the Interesting Narrative teaches us about slavery in the Atlantic world, how Equiano’s abolitionist movement influenced the way he structured his narrative and how he constituted “African” heritage.
Olaudah Equiano was born in the African territory of Guinea, Eboe where slavery was common in the region.
Eboe man and those women trained in combat, would kidnap men from other tribes or districts for slavery. Traders would forge settlements among the chiefs of tribes in trade for slaves. Equiano writes about the similarities of African and European cultures. Eboe culture and religion are similar to that of Europeans, the only separation was that of skin colour. Nonetheless, Europeans did not care to see the potential for civilized Africans because they were only viewed to be enslaved. At the early age of eleven, Equiano and his sister were than kidnapped, separated and sold into slavery. The horrors, of being kidnapped only to be separated from his loved ones. His journey of constantly being sold arrived after many months where he is encountered by a slave-ship waiting for him. To his shock he encounters something so estrange to his eyes, European white males. Alarmed by what he saw, all black males aboard were slaves linked together by chains resembling animals. Slave endured horrific amount of pain, forced to be below deck with lack of any hygienic ways to operate themselves. These condition were cruel, frightful, and gruesome that epidemics began to arise generating copious amounts of slaves to take ill and die. There long and extensive journey embarked on the land of Barbados were all slave were soon to be auctioned off for slavery. Equiano was one of the copious
amount of slaves sold to Virginia to be put to work on the plantations. Alone and unknown to the language he is surrounded by. However through his journey into slavery Equiano experience the monstrosities of slave treatments. Those would chose to run, legs would be remove, black slave women raped, removal from family members and unwholesome living conditions (5). In several occurrences within the Interesting Narrative, Equiano uses first hand experiences to teach his readers about the institution of slavery and to prove his argument against it. His arguments are made on the moral grounds. Experience much like the slave leg being butchered or the inhumane indifference African slaves were accustomed to. Perhaps his gruesome illustrations of the cramped conditions of slave-ships was to appeal to the readers moral consciousness. The Interesting Narrative teaches us about slavery in the Atlantic world so that his readers could use his written text to picture the life of African slave and to be informed on the condition they experienced because of the slave trade.
called ‘christian-like’ people who forced persons like Equiano into slavery. His journey beginning from being free than forced into slavery just to have to regain his right to freedom that he had once occupied. Equiano opposes the religious and economic grounds that Europeans believed slave trade was acceptable. The value of this text is that it brings this unique perspective of the abolitionist movement from an actual enslaved African. A perfect position to accurately personify the reality of the slave trade. The Interesting Narrative effectively advocates for abolition, since Equiano was one of the rare many slave who encompassed the ability to read and write the language of the men and women he wished to reach out to. This paper will highlight how the Interesting Narrative teaches us about slavery in the Atlantic world, how Equiano’s abolitionist movement influenced the way he structured his narrative and how he constituted “African” heritage.
Olaudah Equiano was born in the African territory of Guinea, Eboe where slavery was common in the region.
Eboe man and those women trained in combat, would kidnap men from other tribes or districts for slavery. Traders would forge settlements among the chiefs of tribes in trade for slaves. Equiano writes about the similarities of African and European cultures. Eboe culture and religion are similar to that of Europeans, the only separation was that of skin colour. Nonetheless, Europeans did not care to see the potential for civilized Africans because they were only viewed to be enslaved. At the early age of eleven, Equiano and his sister were than kidnapped, separated and sold into slavery. The horrors, of being kidnapped only to be separated from his loved ones. His journey of constantly being sold arrived after many months where he is encountered by a slave-ship waiting for him. To his shock he encounters something so estrange to his eyes, European white males. Alarmed by what he saw, all black males aboard were slaves linked together by chains resembling animals. Slave endured horrific amount of pain, forced to be below deck with lack of any hygienic ways to operate themselves. These condition were cruel, frightful, and gruesome that epidemics began to arise generating copious amounts of slaves to take ill and die. There long and extensive journey embarked on the land of Barbados were all slave were soon to be auctioned off for slavery. Equiano was one of the copious
amount of slaves sold to Virginia to be put to work on the plantations. Alone and unknown to the language he is surrounded by. However through his journey into slavery Equiano experience the monstrosities of slave treatments. Those would chose to run, legs would be remove, black slave women raped, removal from family members and unwholesome living conditions (5). In several occurrences within the Interesting Narrative, Equiano uses first hand experiences to teach his readers about the institution of slavery and to prove his argument against it. His arguments are made on the moral grounds. Experience much like the slave leg being butchered or the inhumane indifference African slaves were accustomed to. Perhaps his gruesome illustrations of the cramped conditions of slave-ships was to appeal to the readers moral consciousness. The Interesting Narrative teaches us about slavery in the Atlantic world so that his readers could use his written text to picture the life of African slave and to be informed on the condition they experienced because of the slave trade.