Olaudah Equiano Research Paper

Olaudah traveled numerous places many of which was with with the British sea captain. According to the Olaudah Equiano Biography, Equiano traveled extensively. He

In 1786 Equiano was appointed commissary for Stores for the Black Poor. This was a social outreach group of the British antislavery movement that saw returning blacks to Africa as the best way to end British slave trade (O'Neale, 157). He was fired after five months because of a conflict he had with Joseph Irwin. This conflict drew criticism onto Equiano but he would regain his status in the abolition movement by publishing responses to the criticism in the British newspapers.

He began travelling all around the world, form Turkey to Jamaica. He eventually wrote his own autobiography, The interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano. This was an important Autobiography because it was one of the first slave autobiography and slave account to be broadly read and distributed. His story is one of great significance, and throughout his story you can see the inner conflict brewing inside of him. At first, Equiano was not completely in opposition of slavery, as long as it was done and under humane conditions. However, he eventually goes against this “peculiar institution” and he then begins traveling throughout Britain as an active abolitionist. He worked as an author and abolitionist until his death in 1797

Eventually some of his friends encouraged him to write an autobiography in 1789 The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano was published and it sold very well, it was even translated into multiple languages. The book was very well received by the general populace in England, helping the abolitionist movement immensely, and made Olaudah sort of famous. The money he made off of his autobiography set him up for good, so he could spend his time protesting slavery. He gained so much popularity that he personally petitioned to the king to end

It was highly detailed and there lies one of the most raised questions. If Equiano was fictitious about where he was born and whether or not he was a captive, then how did he know so much about the middle passage? Another raised question was how could he speak fluent Igbo? Maybe he completed interviews with individuals in order to learn the language and learn about the details that he mentioned in his passage. But wouldn’t that be great lengths to go in order to write an autobiography. Seems to me that it would have been easier to write a biography about another individual and their voyage to the Carolinas. That is just my opinion. Be that as it may, Equiano was/is one of the most influential abolitionists of his

He was sent to the Virginia colony after not being sold in Barbados. While he was in Virginia he was eventually purchased by an officer in the British navy by the name of Pascal. The officer provided Equiano with many different opportunities. He went to England and sailed with the Pascal on many military excursions. As he said in his narrative “Some of the people of the ship use to tell me they were going to carry me back to my own country, and this made me very happy.”(701) He was promised freedom from slavery but somehow it never happened. In 1773 Equiano was sold and was taken to Montserrat and sold to the Islands leading merchant by the name of Robert King. Throughout his journey he saved a lot and he also traded things. Equiano was to the point he was able to save enough money to buy his

He not only changed the world 's morals as a whole, but also changed how slaves themselves stood up to slavery. Equiano impacted the whole entire genre of slave writings. He was a major example in encouraging slaves to stand up and fight with the use of language. Olaudah 's left behind his memories to the people of today, showing that slavery is wrong. Equiano proved to everyone that a black man could be just as smart, and in this case even smarter than many white men.

Olaudah Equiano, also known as Gustavus Vassa, traveled much of the world encountering a variety of people from different cultures and backgrounds. In Equiano’s The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, the author witnesses how slavery was imbedded in the economic and social values of his day and age, through the experiences of others as well as himself. Having numerous relationships with people of differing religions, socioeconomic statuses, and principles, he developed a unique viewpoint of slavery. Although an abolitionist, his view toward slavery was not initially radical. Equiano’s goal was to ban slave trade, but this goal did not immediately spring from his supposed capture in Nigeria, his native country. Rather, it was a continuous progression throughout his life, modified with every new experience he faced. Equiano mainly became an abolitionist because of the emotional and physical effects slavery had on him and his peers, the economic benefit of banning slave trade, and the human rights naturally given to every man and woman at birth, which he believed were conveyed through the word of God in the Old and New Testament.

Captured far from the African coast when he was a boy of eleven, Olaudah Equiano was sold into slavery, and he later acquired his freedom. He wrote a narrative that became known worldwide. Reading this story for the second time, I still believe and think there is no thesis or hypothesis in this narrative. The author is not exactly trying to prove anything. He is taking us back to the past with him and with the memories, he remembers and he shares it with the readers. As time progressed, it seemed, as if the only culture he held on to were the memories, he had as a child. Memories in which his mother and sister were back with him and he would remember his colorful homeland. I think that as Equiano became more educated he assimilated into American

He did the greater part of his business in the West Indies. Equiano was in the end exchanged for sugar stick and was compelled to go on a slave ship. The conditions were

He also became very successful. He wrote an autobiography called ‘The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano’, which helped create the slave narrative genre. He became an abolitionist, and began defending slavery and shining a light to the issues of it. He became involved in a group called ‘Sons of Africa’, which was a group of black men campaigning for abolition. Authors like Defoe, Rowlandson, and Franklin were very influenced by Olaudah Equiano. He opposed slavery primarily on religious grounds. According to him slave trade was contrary to individual human dignity and the word of God. He brought a whole new understanding to slavery, because he lived through it and gave all of the ugly truths. Without the information and writings of Olaudah Equiano, the topics of slavery may not be the

In his book, The Interesting Narrative of the Life Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, The African. Written by Himself, Olaudah Equiano describes his life from the time he was captured and enslaved at a young age to his journey to freedom. Throughout his book he recalls his culture back in Africa and compares it with the strange, and obscure observations of his experience during his time as a slave. Equiano sometimes struggles with his thoughts on slavery and his particular situations sometimes contradict his judgments. During his time as a slave, Equiano faces a journey that challenges him mentally, physically, and spiritually. Through his journey, Equiano finds that the pathway to freedom is through intellectual development, and his new religious finding of God through the bible.

Equiano was born in Nigeria around 1745 as a child he was kidnapped along with his sister by local slave traders. During his life as a slave he was sold ten times and named changed three times by his masters. In his early slave life he was traded with approximately two hundred other African slaves. His first owner was European by the name of Smith after a brief while of being with his master he plotted his escape. Eventually after the master lost his daughter he became very saddened and this is where things took a turn for the best for Equiano. He was sold again to a new master where he finally was able to see the person he hadn’t seen in a while his sister the joy was soon broken when he was once again sold. The trading happened continuously till eventually he landed in a town in Africa known as Tinmah. As he arrived he was sold to a master where he received many

In 1789, Olaudah Equiano published his autobiography that was entitled, The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, the African. The purpose of the book was to aid the abolitionist efforts in their struggle to abolish slavery. From the beginning of the book, it is apparent that the intended audience of the book are Christians. A quote from the book of Isaiah, containing “Behold, God is my salvation ;” preluded Equiano’s narrative that detailed his life, beginning with his kidnapping as a young boy in Africa, the voyage across the Atlantic to the Caribbean Islands, and his adventures travelling the world as a slave aboard one of England’s warships. In fact, Equiano’s book established a large audience among Christians and some English royalty.

In an attempt to persuade the reader of the Englishmen evil actions, Equiano reveals the hypocrisy of European ideas of enlightenment and the dehumanizing nature of slavery. Equiano Olauduah's autobiography, The Interesting Narrative Life of Equiano Olauduah is a unique and intriguing story which includes vivid and great detailed descriptions of the author's life both as a slave and a free black man. Throughout Equiano's life he encounters many hardships and misery. In the beginning of the narrative, he explains his experience on a slave ship when he was sent away: “These filled me with astonishment, which was soon converted into terror when I was carried aboard” (38). He explains his amazement of the new advances throughout the ship but also explains the terror of being on the ship and watching the miserable slaves upon the ship. He has come in contact with many people of different races, religion and intelligence. Equiano was a well-rounded intelligent black male which many people admired. Although Equiano purchased his freedom and now considered a free man, he still endured man hardships.