Oroonko Novel

If it were not for the stories past down from generation to generation or the documentations in historical books, the history of the twelve million African slaves that traveled the “Middle Passage” in miserable conditions would not exist. Olaudah Equiano contributes to this horrid history with The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. Through this narrative, the appalling personal experience of each slave is depicted. He accomplishes his rhetorical purpose of informing the world of the slave experience in this narrative. His use of unique style and rhetorical devices in this conveying narrative portray his imperative rhetorical purpose.

Olaudah Equiano’s “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavas Vassa, the African” was first published in 1789 in London, England (687). Equiano’s narrative is informative; however, it is critical of the treatment of slaves and persuasive in its appeals to end the brutal treatment of African Americans. His intended audience was his friends and the public. Regarding the purpose of his narrative, Equiano wrote in Chapter I, “If it affords any satisfaction to my numerous friends … or in the smallest degree promotes the interests of humanity, the ends for which it was undertaken will be fully attained” (688). His narrative also offered a first-hand (first-person narrative) account of slavery and shared the story of his journey towards freedom. Equiano’s narrative is in chronological order after a brief introduction in Chapter I, which explained his purpose for writing his story along with providing background information on his childhood and the culture of his birthplace in Essaka, Africa. Furthermore, although much of Equiano’s story centered on his extensive sea travel, his harmonious mixture of formal and informal word choices along with the lack of the technical terminology commonly associated with sailors helps the general audience

By reading this poem, the reader can understand the viewpoint of many Europeans, and how they viewed themselves as being significantly “more intellectual” than the Africans.

Olaudah Equiano, the author of The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano was captured in Africa and sold into slavery. Later in life, he purchased his freedom and wrote his autobiography in 1789. Equiano experienced hardships beyond imaging in his years as a slave and oftentimes witnessed extensive cruelty by whites towards Africans. Equiano 's experience of the Atlantic slave trade and middle passage as we understand it today was typical of a regular captive. The Atlantic slave trade, more specifically the experience that Equiano had was horrific. The Atlantic slave trade stands as one of the greatest mistreatments towards other humans to have ever happened, for nearly 400 years this occurred. Equiano 's experience however

Throughout history, slaves have been treated like animals and thought of as property, not human beings. Even Oroonoko, a handsome, statuesque prince is turned into a slave because of his race, and is degraded and mistreated. To racist slave owners, the horrible treatment of Africans was acceptable because they were a different species, and no amount of education or beauty could save them. Behn shows how unjust and brutal slavery is in Oroonoko. The treatment of slaves is comparable to the treatment of the poor, as both have few rights, and both are unjustly judged and mistreated based on social status.

Olaudah Equiano’s “From the Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano” is written with the intent of ending the slave trade and aiding the abolitionists’ movement. His narrative tells his personal story of kidnapping, being sold into slavery and his experience in the middle passage. According to this account Olaudah Equiano grew up in Africa with a large family. He was captured and sold into slavery at age eleven. As an adult he became an opposing voice to slavery. This autobiography was published in Britain, with the help of abolitionists. This gives a purpose to Equiano’s writing and the purpose is shown throughout the text as Equiano tries to expose the evil of the slave trade.

Constantly throughout the novel, Joseph Conrad describes the Africans using words bearing a negative connotation. Africans are portrayed in Conrad's novel as inhuman savages with no language other than sound. For example, he describes Kurtz’s African mistress as “savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent.” (5; part 3) Conrad uses the word savage frequently when describing Africans in the novella. Kurtz’s mistress is used in contrast to a European girl who loves Kurtz.

He explains that black people were civilized and influenced by American civilization due to which they could speak English and be civilized so why not the Indians. Indians were called the savage as they were uncivilized and uneducated. He has written that Indians can even be civilized and made industrious and self supporting by the help of Americans civilization." We make our greatest mistake in feeding our civilization to the Indians to our civilization( Reading American past)". This demonstrates the condition of pathetic Indians in the west. Indians are deprived of preliminary facilities and even many died because of starvation. This was not only the condition of Indians, other minor group also

In Chapter 22 and 23 of Things Fall Apart, conflict arises concerning Okonkwo, the village, and district commissioner. Enoch, a convert commits a crime. During the annual worship of the earth goddess, he said that an egwugwu would not dare to touch a Christian. In response, one of them hits him with a cane and Enoch publicly unmasks the egwugwu. All the egwugwu, on the next day gather and storm the village as they destroy Enoch’s compound. They go to the church and surround Mr. Smith and Okeke, who then tells them to leave the “house of God.” They refuse and burn the church to the ground. Okonkwo along with the other leaders are invited to speak with the District Commissioner to discuss what had happened, but they get imprisoned instead as

The captivity narrative and the slave narrative are two types of literary works, which were very common during the 17th and the 18th century. The captivity narrative usually involves an innocent white woman who is taken captive by an Indian tribe, who the woman describes as savages in most of the cases. On the other hand, the slave narrative focuses on the quality of life that slaves were facing before the time of the abolishment of slavery. Although the captivity narrative and the slave narrative show some similarities, they are completely different. We can observe the differences by analyzing two literary works, A Narrative of The Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson by Mary Rowlandson and From The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavas Vassa, the African, Written by Himself by Olaudah Equiano. A Narrative of The Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson is a narrative written by Mary Rowlandson herself, which sheds light on her own experiences revolving captivity. The Interesting Narrative of The Life of Olaudah Equiano gives the reader insight into the life of a slave, the treatments they endure, and usually their freedom, whether it be through escaping or other means. Both narratives usually include real-life accounts, however, the differences lie in the structure of the narrative, the purpose that the narrative is trying to lay out and the treatment of the parties who are living these experiences.

Oroonoko is able to sustain his code of virtue and fidelity by showing an act of true loyalty that proves his devotion and love to his lover and wife, Imoinda. After the King, Oroonoko’s grandfather, vigorously takes Imoinda for himself, Oroonoko

Gulliver’s Travels and Oroonoko shatter the myth that European culture was more civilized than “newly discovered” savage countries. The most prominent examples in Oroonoko are their treatment of the slaves and how they are punished. In Gulliver’s Travels the evidence revolves around how petty, destructive, illogical, and unreasonable human beings act. Though the authors of these stories differ on many levels from their writing style to the very reason why their story was written they have a common theme. They show glaring evidence that European culture is actually more savage than the countries

her would-be lover impotent, an outcast from what used to be his realm of power.

Aphra Behn’s novel, Oroonoko, gives a very different perspective on a slave narrative. Her characters embody various characteristics not usually given to those genders and races. Imoinda’s character represents both the modern feminist, as well as the subservient and mental characteristics of the typical eighteenth-century English woman. Oroonoko becomes an embodiment of what is normally a white man’s characteristic; he is the noble, princely, and sympathetic character that is not usually attributed to black men in general throughout most novels of slavery. The complete opposite character style is given to the slavers; the English are viewed as the barbaric, cunning, brutal characters that are usually portrayed in opposite and more generous

As Europeans discovered other cultures during the Age of Exploration, travelers returned with knowledge of new religious, political, and economic systems. Aphra Behn’s seventeenth-century travel narrative, Oroonoko, describes the life of Oroonoko, an African prince and slave in Surinam, while contrasting the cruelty of the Europeans with the morality of the Africans and natives of Surinam. Thomas More’s sixteenth-century Utopia displays his subtle criticism of English society behind the words of his character Raphael Hythloday, who travels the world and explores the rationality of Utopia. These authors criticize many of the conventions of their time periods through their characters’ explorations into new ideas and territories. In Oroonoko and Utopia, nature and reason lead the natives’ governments and societies instead of the corruption of the wealthy and noble Europeans.