In comparison to other slaves that are discussed over time, Olaudah Equiano truly does lead an ‘interesting’ life. While his time as a slave was very poor there are certainly other slaves that he mentions that received far more damaging treatment than he did. In turn this inspires him to fight for the abolishment of slavery. By pointing out both negative and positive events that occurred, the treatment he received from all of his masters, the impact that religion had on his life and how abolishing slavery could benefit the future of everyone as a whole; Equiano develops a compelling argument that does help aid the battle against slavery. For Olaudah Equiano’s life journey expressed an array of cruelties that came with living the life of an Obviously they are not the same positives or opportunities that a free white man might receive but they were slightly better than the suffering that came from being an abused slaved. There were rare slave owners that allowed for some of their slaves to have a sense of ‘freedom’ or equality. For example, Mr. King one of Olaudah’s masters gave him more freedom throughout his time there. Which gives Olaudah several opportunities to buy his freedom. The hope brings out a lot about his character, his determination and work ethic shine through, in turn these are desirable traits that slave owners were looking for. Meaning Olaudah was passed around several masters and majority of them were indicating that he could buy out his freedom, unfortunately, they were lying and Olaudah was sold to the others. The negatives of Olaudah’s life also provides him the chance to ponder the ‘happier times’. For instance, back in his original village he discussed their religion, customs and his family. He seemed to have fairly peaceful memories of them. The optimist view that Olaudah has for his future, is inspiring. He finds friendship with Richard Baker, and even begins to become affectionate towards some of the kinder masters and crew mates he had. A trait that makes him a significant face in abolishing slavery. He saw that there could be a brighter future, especially if you worked hard and treated people When it comes to slavery, it in and of itself is negative. Cruelty is everywhere; either within the trade ships, the abuse from the owners and just ‘non-slaves’ in general. There is war and battles that took place that Olaudah was forced to fight in. He witnessed men being blown up in front of him as he himself was given one of the more dangerous jobs. Being on the ship, Olaudah met people from all different countries. He found that some were fairly nice including the British and Spanish crew men, however, men like that were very few. More often than not, the authority on the ship and in the cities that Olaudah visited were vicious. The stories he shares of the slaves begging on the ships for the scraps and suffering from illness. The horror of it all heightens Olaudah’s desire to aid the fight of abolishing slavery. Whether he was the one suffering for the abuse or he was witnessing it happen; his dream of men being equal to bring themselves closer to god was bright in his
To begin, Olaudah’s perspective during the journey was different than you might think. Do not be mistaken, he did not have a positive mentality about being sold into slavery. He did however have a sort of wonder about the world and a hope that he carries with him throughout his life. As said by Olaudah pg. 174, “This heightened my wonder; and i was now more persuaded than ever that i was in another world and that everything about me
There are few things as brutal as the history of the institution of slavery. In his autobiography, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African, the aforementioned Olaudah Equiano describes the experience of his entrance into slavery.
Olaudah Equiano was not an American born slave. He was born and raised well into his childhood in Africa with his family. His slave narrative, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustav Vassa, the African, published in New York in 1791 however, had a lasting impact on America as it described the inhumane treatment of Africans being sold into slavery (Baym 1: 687). Equiano’s initial concept of freedom stemmed from his childhood of which he speaks very fondly, describing his homeland as a “nation of dancers, musicians and poets,” a...
Both, “The Interesting Narrative Life of Olaudah Equiano” and “Amistad” are important stories about slavery in pre-civil war america because they both address the issues of slavery. These gentlemen in the story made a difference in the slave trade. In “The life of Olaudah Equiano”, Olaudah was sold on a slave ship that came to the Barbados. Olaudah worked for his freedom, and in the end became efficient in American language. He worked his way to the free life and in the end it worked out for him, although it leaves scars on his soul. In “Amistad”, Cinque is a slave that leads a revolt on a slave ship after escaping. When they get to america, Baldwin, a lawyer that is representing the slave and the former president Adams helps free the slaves.
...aves. Olaudah’s story may be seen as a reminder that people in the latest generation have things easy compared to the time he was alive. People should not take what they have for granted, for example freedom. The people of today have the most freedom than ever before.
Document One The Journey to Slavery is about the life of Olaudah Equiano. Equiano was born in what is now Nigeria in 1745. At the age of 11 Equiano and his younger sister were taken from their home, drug though the woods, sold, and was then separated from one another. Equiano’s experience was considered very rare. Throughout his life as a slave he had three different owners. Equiano went from one master to the other till he ended up in a pleasant country in the hands of a leader with children and two wives. He describes how his owners treated him like he was part of the family. They spoke he same
The fight for racial equality is one of the most prominent issues Americans have faced throughout history and even today; as the idea that enslaving individuals is unethical emerged, many great and innovative authors began writing about the issues that enslaved people had to face. Olaudah Equiano was no exception. In his work The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, he attempts to persuade his readers that the American way of slavery is brutal, inhumane, and unscrupulous. Equiano manages to do this by minimizing the apparent differences between himself and his primarily white audience, mentioning the cruelties that he and many other slaves had to face, and the advantages of treating your slaves correctly.
Slavery in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries consisted of brutal and completely unjust treatment of African-Americans. Africans were pulled from their families and forced to work for cruel masters under horrendous conditions, oceans away from their homes. While it cannot be denied that slavery everywhere was horrible, the conditions varied greatly and some slaves lived a much more tolerable life than others. Examples of these life styles are vividly depicted in the personal narratives of Olaudah Equiano and Mary Prince. The diversity of slave treatment and conditions was dependent on many different factors that affected a slave’s future. Mary Prince and Olaudah Equiano both faced similar challenges, but their conditions and life styles
Olaudah Equiano demonstrates a shift in tone from dark to fanciful while on the ship highlighting the true tragedy of enslaving young children. In the compacted ship, Equiano describes hearing “the shrieks of women, and the groans of the dying… (as) a scene of horror” (45). Equiano darkly describes his everyday life leading up to slavery as a “scene of horror”. The author's strategic use of diction ultimately creates sympathy from the reader as he explains the hardships of slavery. Soon after, men from the ship “make [Equiano]... look through…(a) quadrant…heighten[ing] (his) wonder (and) persuad[ing] (equiano) that [he] was in another world...and that everything...was magic” (47). Despite his terrible situation, Equiano is still able to find
Olaudah Equiano in his Interesting Narrative is taken from his African home and thrown into a Western world completely foreign to him. Equiano is a slave for a total of ten years and endeavors to take on certain traits and customs of Western thinking. He takes great pains to improve himself, learn religion, and adopt Western mercantilism. However, Equiano holds on to a great deal of his African heritage. Throughout the narrative, the author keeps his African innocence and purity of intent; two qualities he finds sorely lacking in the Europeans. This compromise leaves him in a volatile middle ground between his adapted West and his native Africa. Olaudah Equiano takes on Western ideals while keeping several of his African values; this makes him a man associated with two cultures but a member of neither.
"The Life of Olaudah Equiano” is a captivating story in which Equiano, the author, reflects on his life from becoming a slave to a freeman during the 19th century. Through his experiences and writing, Equiano paints a vivid picture of the atrocities and cruelties of European slavery. Ultimately through his narrative, Equiano intends to persuade his audience, the British government, to abolish the Atlantic slave trade as well as alert them of the harsh treatment of slaves. He successfully accomplishes his goal by subtly making arguments through the use of character, action, and setting.
Assignment # 1 Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano History shows that both Africans and African Americans alike faced unique problems prior to and during the 1800's, particularly prior to 1865. One such problem is the issue of the Diaspora and how culture and slavery has affected the choice of religion. It is the purpose of this paper to expose comparatively the extent to which individuals have been influenced by these issues. One such individual is Olaudah Equiano.
Both Mary and Olaudah had merciful captors, but unfortunately, Olaudah had cruel ones as well. Mary was treated kindly and her captors adopted her and paid her for her sewing skills (68). Olaudah was also treated kindly and “never met with any ill treatment,” (27), with his first captors, which “made [him] forget that [he] was a slave,” (28). But sadly, not all of Olaudah’s captors were kind-hearted like the first ones. During his time on the slave ship, Olaudah “wished for [his] former slavery in preference to [his] present situation,” (31). But life gets even harder for Olaudah, like when he and other slaves were starving and the crewmen caught many fish and “rather than give any of them to [them] to eat as [they] expected, they tossed the remaining fish into the sea,” (32). Mary, on the other hand, was able to buy her own food and cook it (69). Overall, Olaudah was treated worse by his captors than
Religion, more specifically, Christianity can be seen throughout The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano. Religion plays a major role in Equiano’s remarkable journey; that of which can be seen through his personal experiences. Religion plays a significant role in his Narrative and his life overall as he undergoes a spiritual rebirth. This narrative shapes Equiano’s physical move from slavery to freedom and also his journey from sin to salvation.
The title, The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, shows a more explicit marriage between his two identities: Olaudah the free “English” man and Gustavus, the slave. Even though he seems dedicated to his English identity and although he tries to marry Englishness and slavery, Equiano also separates them. “Did [he] consider himself to be European, [he] might say that [his] sufferings were great” (Equiano, 1789, p. 2). Here he shows that although he engages and fully endorses the marriage of slavery and Englishness, or Europeaness, the two identities will never come to understand life in the same way although they rely on each other, Englishness more so on slavery than the other way around. They are so starkly different, the experiences the slaves went though were extremely grave, their living conditions and the way they were treated by whites was inhumane; even the basest of European society lived in better conditions than most if not all slaves. To Equiano, the things that he went through were not that bad when compared to another slave’s experience. One could say that the man was extremely lucky when comparing his experience to another slave’s. But when compared to a European “his sufferings were great.” Despite this, an attempt at the marriage of slavery and Englishness or Europeanness is not impossible. And it is this possible union that Equiano attempts to show in his