Preview

Olaudah Equiano Narrative Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
383 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Olaudah Equiano Narrative Analysis
The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano presented English identity as the epitome of modernity, and the mark of cultural maturity. Rather than being a set racial or national identity Equiano portrayed englishness as an achievable goal, even for a racially black man. The Narrative intentionally depicted Equiano’s transformation from African boy to Englishman a positive change. Through the portrayal of his life as a struggle to become an Englishman; and his telling of a willing adoption of anglican religion, cultural values, and economic sensibilities, Olaudah Equiano purposefully appealed to the paternalistic nature of the English in order to advocate for the abolition of slavery. The Narrative depicted the African people

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Ben Hall and Maguire may have divided the property and operated independently of each other, as in John McGuire's narrative, 'The Biography of a Reliable Old Native', Maguire states that Ben Hall reputedly named his portion 'Cubbine Bin', running his own cattle and horses, and when required the two men worked together in clearing and forming stockyards close to their water supply, this would have been a prudent way to operate a new farming enterprise in the 1860’s, and thus the two squatters shared the yearly rent to the government, as for the acquiring of stock for this new enterprise, John Maguire states that Ben Hall and himself had done a bit of duffing, Maguire…

    • 116 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Best Essays

    When Equiano’s autobiographical text was first published in England, 1789, it was a big hit, as I would say. It was mostly considered as “to end the slave trade and played a crucial role in the nationwide abolitionist movement of the late eighteenth-century England” (Ito 83). For me it was not a surprise that England would have been onboard with the whole aspect of abolishing slavery because throughout Equiano’s autobiography I could notice how well he was being treated. For example, Equiano as a boy was taken to Guernsey and he said, “This woman behaved…

    • 1965 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    The “Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano” has been heavily analyzed and critiqued ever since it was published in London in 1789. Disputes over Equiano’s Narrative include debates over his actual birthplace, the consistency of his factual information, his sanity, and even whether Equiano was the legitimate author of the book. All of these issues can be used to disprove Equiano’s story as being true (or not entirely true), thus diminishing the usefulness and effectiveness of his book as a backbone of the abolition movement. Slavery had become an extremely lucrative business for slave-owners and such, and essentially brought many countries to power through its successful business due to the free labor as well as through the slave trade. However, Olaudah Equiano strongly opposed the institution of slavery by proclaiming that slavery was immoral, unjust, unethical, and that Africans must not be oppressed because they should be seen as equals to Europeans. He also refuted the notion that slavery could be justified economically, as he modeled an economic theory justifying an economic and commercial boost that would develop with the abolition of slavery. Consequently, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano was seen as a monumental threat to the pro-slavery movement, causing those opposing the anti-slavery movement to initiate false condemnations in order to protect their profits and economic gains.…

    • 1237 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Enrique is at Nuevo Laredo ,where he meets new people can help him. Few days he starts to gets depressed, when he doesn’t see his mother for months. Enrique and his friends help each others to survive. Enrique earn 60 pesos to eat something and make a phone call to his mother. He presumes to make a call, but he couldn’t find his bucket. His friends tell him that he needs a guideline to cross Texas.…

    • 76 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The first selection is a document that shows the laws of slavery from 1660 to 1705 in Virginia. The document shows what rules the slave owners must follow and what punishment African slaves received if rules were not followed compared to the English laborers who rules were less harsh. Finally the second selection is a passage from Olaudah Equiano's autobiography written in 1789. Olauden describes his slave experience at a slave auction in the Caribbean. Olauden believes that the white men should live up to their belief of liberty to any man no matter of color. These selection shows how valuable African slaves were to colony America.…

    • 227 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    1. Olaudah Equiano represented a confluence of African and European cultures. While he spent only his childhood in Africa, Equiano remained cognizant of his African heritage and tied to his cultural roots. Yet he also embraced British culture and customs with prodigious alacrity. Equiano imbibed British ideas about liberty, commerce, Protestant religion, and social habits and mores. He even married an Englishwoman, Susan Cullen, and lived out his days in London. In short, Equiano lionized British society and sought to emulate his white peers. How does Equiano define his identity? Is he African? Is he British? How do you explain this hybridity?…

    • 370 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    A standard and structured education in 18th century Colonial America was mostly limited to colonists arriving from Europe or those living in the New England region. Like most educated colonists, the benefit of an education was readily accessible for those that were from a white, well-to-do families and rarely to an African or former slave. These schools provided a regular curriculum where students learned to read, write, and study religion. Furthermore, Africans were commonly viewed as an inferior race suited to a life in the fields or used as slave labor and incompatible in scholarly teachings. In “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano,” a reader can easily witness the limitless possibilities of African-Americans, most notably…

    • 896 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Olaudah Equiano Passage

    • 330 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The passage from The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Gustavus Vassa, the African, Written by Himself is structured to humanize the African population being brought to the America’s. By positively depicting the image of black men and at the same time using negative diction to portray the image of white men, Equiano is able to challenge the ideals that black people are savages and instead questions who the real bad ones are. Equiano structures his passage by first introducing black people as helpless when he states, “poor chained men”. This is intentional because it instantly infers that the black people in the text are the victims. Equiano further uplifts the image of black people when he states, “ I found some of my nation,…

    • 330 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There is no denying that slavery has existed since the beginning of time. References and drawings describing slavery have been traced all the way back to the biblical era. While many people associate the word slavery with the African race, history shows that multiple races and cultures have undergone such captivity. In “The Origins of Antiblack Racism in the New World” by David Brian Davis and “Unthinking Decision: Enslavement of Africans in America to 1700” by Winthrop D. Jordan, two historians express varying opinions on racialized slavery towards Africans. Their argument differs not only in time and location but also the underlining factor in which slavery became racialized.…

    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The second narrative by Equiano also uses observational information, focuses on his point of view, and makes the narrative a reflective passage so he can portray his experience of becoming a slave. Equiano uses observational information to give the audience an image of what it looked like being on the slave ship, “I fell motionless on the deck” (ln 15-16), this explicates that he was fearful, shocked, and anguish from seeing other people chained up. Equiano makes the narrative focus on one event to give a more emphasis on his experience on the ship “the crew watched us very closely who were not chained down to the deck”(ln44-45). The concluding…

    • 110 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mastery, Tyranny, & Desire

    • 1356 Words
    • 6 Pages

    In eighteenth-century Jamaica, the driving forces behind the institution of slavery were power and fear. Thomas Thistlewood, part plantation owner, part foot soldier for the British Empire, was a young man fueled by an immense desire for wealth and independence. In Jamaica, Thistlewood was thrown into a society in which wealthy white men subjugated blacks from Africa in cruel bondage to turn extraordinary profits. Because of their skin color, whites held a collective equality over the slaves and used their power to instill fear into their counterparts. On the other hand, it was their own fear of the slaves rebelling that caused the owners to inflict inconceivable amounts of torture and punishment. This struggle for power between slaves and masters led to a trade-off. The slaves recognized they would have to obey their masters or face the consequences. At the same time, slaves also realized that their situation could be manipulated and that they could help their own cause by cooperating. Thistlewood’s differing relationships with his slaves showcase how some were able to exploit this trade-off while others fell short. His diary shines light on the lives of Lincoln, Coobah, Sally, and Phibbah who each had their own ways of dealing with life on the plantation.…

    • 1356 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Passed down from generation to generation, oral tradition predominates as one of the most significant sources in discovering the history of the African diaspora. Plagued by illiteracy, the tangible text of the past remains useless for both the freed man and slave, this heightens the use of spoken word to elicit the events of themselves and their ancestors. Through the American Folklore Center, the stories that George Johnson convey, take form. Interviewed in 1940, George Johnson, a former slave from Brierfield, Virginia, recalls the tales of his own enslavement as well as the stories he passed down from his father and grandfather. However, his strictly progressive rendition of his place in North American slavery, not only question the accuracy of his own life events, but the reliability of oral tradition as a whole.…

    • 1273 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In Exchanging Our Country Marks, Michael Gomez brings together various strands of the historical record in a stunning fusion that points the way to a definitive history of American Slavery. In this fusion of history, anthropology, and sociology, Gomez has made expert use of primary sources, including newspapers ads for runaway slaves in colonial America. Slave runaway accounts from newspapers are combined with personal diaries, church records, and former slave narratives to provide a firsthand account of the African and African-American experiences during the eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth centuries. With this mastery of sources, Gomez challenges many of the prevailing assumptions about slavery-- for example, that "the new condition of slavery superseded all others" (48)-- and he advances intriguing new speculations about the development of a collective African-American identity. In Gomez's words: "It is a study of their efforts to move from ethnicity to race as a basis for such an identity, a movement best understood when the impact of both internal and external forces upon social relations within this community is examined"(4).…

    • 1509 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    This essay written by Jon Butler explains the evolution of slavery, including the Africans' experiences in America, and the developing of a sense of community among these people.…

    • 284 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    This book not only goes into details about the labor that the slaves partook in on a daily basis that kept America up and running, but also about the cultural aspect of bring slaves into the country. Bringing African’s over to America brought a whole new culture to America. Although white men enslaved African’s they continued to embrace their culture. They brought a new religion, language, music, and several skills that have uniquely blended the American culture that it is today.…

    • 1403 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays