Analysis Of Oroonoko By Aphra Behn

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Recommended: Critical analysis of slavery

Throughout Aphra Behn’s short novel, her interest in the abolitionist agenda comes off as tepid at best. While reading Oroonoko, it is difficult to say if the author is against the institution of slavery as a whole, or just against the enslavement of a specimen as beautiful and noble as Oroonoko. Much of the slave’s eponymous story is spent waxing poetic about Oroonoko’s appearance and dignity instead of demonstrating the inherent evils of the inhumane commodification of other human beings.
Behn’s protagonist, Oroonoko, is an exception to the typical African slave in every way in the narrator’s eyes. After all, he is a dashing, young prince who has received a special Western education because of his royal status. The author does everything in her power to separate Oroonoko from the other negro slaves and put him in a category of his own, and during
She might not have pushed her activist message very hard because the novel was published in 1688 and she wanted the story to be digestible for seventeenth century European readers. When looked at with this in mind, the copious amount of detail and praise for Oroonoko and his Western-approved attributes makes much more sense. The reader can then see the flowery depictions of the slave prince as the author trying to convince her European audience of Oroonoko’s worth, rather than someone making an exception for her otherwise traditional views. However, I think that it would have made much more sense to go with a more obvious and empathy evoking stance on slavery that could not be ignored. The way the narrative is framed, there is space to leave the readers unsure at best. At worst, it could lead to the possibility of someone justifying their own actions and opinions regarding slavery, because none of their slaves are so noble as the great Oroonoko, and therefore not deserving of special

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