ipl-logo

Olaudah Equiano Analysis

811 Words4 Pages

In the Narrative “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gusta Vassa, the African” Olauduh Equiano starts off by explaining to the readers that he believes that there are some events in his life that have not happen to many others.He believes his story is almost one of a kind. Even so, he doesn 't expect his memoir to immortalize him or give him any literary reputation.It seems as he just wanted to share his story that he experienced and felt that it must be experience through his writing and shared with others. In the beginning of the narrative he states that he was born in the year 1745 in the district named Effaka. He had little to no recollection of the distance from his district to the capital of Bernin and the sea coast. He went on to talk about how he has never heard of the white men or Europeans. Which is completely reasonable for the time because of the lack of navigation and communication in the mid 18th …show more content…

He spoke about the luxuries which are very few but went on to speak about the dress of both sexes which are primarily the same.It consisted of a long a piece of calico, which was wrapped very loosely around the waist of both sexes. It seems as their mannerism would be exactly as presented through the text. If they don 't have much they aren 't going to complain about anything because they never experience anything better than what they don 't already have now. Olauduh Equiano experiences seems to be similar to those of historical portrayal of Africans in literature and film. The reason this is true is because in films they portray Africans as people who wear loose clothing to cover up their body parts. Also in films they portray Africans as people who are not explorers and have only been in the same place all their life. That 's why in the beginning Olauduh Equiano said he has never heard a white man before

Show More
Related

  • Yonah Toledano Converso Analysis

    347 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Converso community changed drastically during Yonah Toledano’s lifetime. Starting at the moment when the expulsion from Spain was first announced, “Almost one-third of the Jews became conversos because they feared the terrible dangers of travel, or out of love for a Christian, or they had achieved position and comfort they couldn’t bring themselves to renounce, or they had had enough of being despised” (37). Jews who refused to convert were threatened to be killed. Sometimes when a member of a Jewish family converted, their family would say the Kaddish for them as if they had died. The conversos were not usually treated as Old Christians were.

    Read More

  • A Comparison Of Olaudah Equiano And The Journal Of Christopher Columbus

    726 Words  | 3 Pages

    While Equiano's narrative shows the terrible conditions that he and his fellow Africans had to endure on the ship, Columbus’s journal has a very different cover. As opposed to Equiano's picture, Columbus’s journal shows he and his crew landing on an island in the Caribbean claiming land for spain triumphantly. This obviously shows two very different objectives in the stories. Emotion can be effected with the words we use as well, in Equiano's narrative there is an

    Read More

  • Life Of Olaudah Equiano And Argument Upholding Slavery

    1160 Words  | 5 Pages

    This was the corruption of the white men of that time who were afraid of the truth surfacing and everyone finding out the truth about slavery. Equiano was able to share a little detail about how slaves were treated by saying that “[he] was first transported to Barbados and then Virginia, where he was purchased by a local planter,” (512). This action shows the reader that the slaves were treated as a form of property that was sold for labor. Equiano was never given the chance to gain the same freedom as a white man, he had to work for money. He goes on to say "I was now exceedingly miserable, and thought myself worse off than any of the rest of my companions ...

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Summary

    196 Words  | 1 Pages

    Throughout history, Africa has not only been whitewashed and demonized, but also has been belittled, diminished, and dismissed entirely because of human ignorance. Monsters and human beasts were rumored to roam Africa due to false information and misunderstandings of early {European} explorers. Oxford historian Hugh ​Trevor-Roper even went as far as to say that Africa has nothing to offer but darkness before European conquest and exploitation, making Africa not respected enough to study. This statement is racist, unenlightened, and undeviatingly inaccurate and steamed solely off of personal bias and takes away all credibility of Trevor-Roper, rightfully so. English historian and author John Reader combated this idea with his African bibliography,

    Read More

  • Olaudah Equiano Rhetorical Analysis

    683 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Equiano's personal slave narrative, "The Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African", Equiano flips the idea that the African people are backwards and barbaric, thus ripe for slavery, by demonstrating his personal exceptionalism through his literacy to show that it is truly the white people who are backwards and barbaric through their own hypocrisy. This reversal that Equiano demonstrates in his slave narrative shows that the savagery of African people exists as a misconception and makes the reader fully grasp the need to abolish slavery and any inequality present. On page seventy-eight, Equiano uses first person pronouns like 'I', 'my', and 'me' to separate himself from the other African people and whites around him. This separation that Equiano creates demonstrates his exceptionalism as an African slave.

    Read More

  • White Dominance In Marmaduke Temple

    166 Words  | 1 Pages

    We also see elements of white dominance in the text’s bias towards Marmaduke Templeton and Elizabeth. Within the novel Marmaduke Temple serves as a figure who cannot be questioned, and consists of aristocratic tropes often found in the old world. Owning a lot of land and having a well educated daughter, he embodies the best of society, one without any struggle. Contrastingly, the description of slaves and Indians within this novel points to their lower status in society. In chapter sixteen we see the depiction of Abraham Freeborn, “The Black,” exhibit itself in obvious ways, “Mottled with large brown spots...while his enormous lips gradually compressed around two rows of ivory..”

    Read More

  • Olaudah Equiano Ethos Pathos Logos

    679 Words  | 3 Pages

    For example, when he told of his arrival in Virginia when he was the last of his group left at a plantation with no one to talk to and no way to understand those around him. To the British readers, who thrived in their own daily social interactions, the thought of such a lonely situation created feelings of pity and understanding. Equiano thought that he was “worse off than any of the rest” of his companions and “was constantly grieving and pining,” because of his loneliness. The British readers related to his emotional distress and allowed themselves to see him as a person. Therefore, they were more open to his ideas on slavery as a whole, because they could relate to Equiano's

    Read More

  • Different But Equal Basil Davidson Analysis

    565 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Basil Davidson’s video, “Different but Equal”, Davidson examines ancient Africa, and how Africans were perceived in ancient and modern times. Davidson discusses pre-colonized Africa and its history, and how racism prevailed in the past and in modern day. By discussing early civilizations, as well as modern day perspectives, Davidson allows the viewer to have expansive information on how individuals view Africans and their culture. In Davidson’s video, he discusses how people in the past have viewed Africa and African culture, and how that relates to our perception of Africa in modern times.

    Read More

  • What Makes Olaudah Equiano Fearful

    133 Words  | 1 Pages

    Olaudah Equiano arrived at the coast where he first saw the sea and a slave ship. He was carried onto the slave ship where he felt that bad spirits were around and the people there wanted to kill him. Equiano was generally fearful of everything on the ship, especially when he noticed that the crew looked and spoke differently than was used to. Horrors of the ship overpowered Equiano and he fainted on the deck. After awakening, Equiano realized that he has no change of returning to his native country.

    Read More

  • Equiano In Black Robe

    700 Words  | 3 Pages

    The appearance of the Atlantic world, especially to the eyes of Equiano, was one that could be described as interesting. We are introduced to a young colored man who has been forced into a new country due to the acts of slavery and is in fear of his life, while in the movie Black Robe, we are introduced to how a Jesuit priest comes to a new land in order to convert the natives of that country. In this essay, readers will be introduced to how a colored person sees a world differently unlike one who comes from such a country such as Europe. On page 91, Equiano starts off by explaining his conditions in his new master 's quarters and how he is shown the graphic details of being a slave, by seeing a woman, who is his own skin color, muzzled

    Read More

  • Captivity And Enslavement, By Olaudah Equiano

    1405 Words  | 6 Pages

    17.1 Captivity and Enslavement, Olaudah Equiano, the interesting Narrative of the life of Olaudah Equiano written by himself 1. What are Equiano’s impressions of the white men on the ship and their treatment of the slaves? How does this treatment reflect the slave traders’ primary concerns? Equiano’s first impression of these white men is a feeling of uncertainty and sorrow for the future. As his story goes on Equiano is afraid of these white men, but also he is wishing to end it all because of the conditions and treatment of the slaves.

    Read More

  • Portrayal Of Africa

    1483 Words  | 6 Pages

    This negative portrayal of Africa began with early scholars and went on until the 19th century during the time of African colonization. In the 12th century for instance, a scholar by the name Benjamin ben Jonah characterized Africans as “people who eat of the herbs that grow on the banks of the Nile and on the fields. They go about naked and have not the intelligence of ordinary men. They cohabit with their sisters and anyone they can find….And these are black slaves, the sons of Ham.”

    Read More

  • Adolf Hitler's Single Story

    1280 Words  | 6 Pages

    This shows us that we don’t have proof of the credibility of some of these memoirs. We could read a memoir, and be manipulated by the danger of a single story. Articles, newspapers, and books may be exaggerated and far from the truth. Many people will just read an piece of literature or hear of news and assume it’s true without second guessing it, especially if it is from the media. When referring to

    Read More

  • Chimamanda Adichie's Theory Of A Single Story

    1055 Words  | 5 Pages

    The speaker was shocked and immediately offended as it was clear that her roommate had already assumed who she was and what her life must of been like just by the looks of Chimamanda ethnicity. Her roomate supposed that she was not capable of doing simple things such as using a stove or speaking english, and also asked to listen to what she called, her “tribal music.” As Chimamanda said…”She had felt sorry for me even before she saw me.” Her roommate 's intentions were not to offend Adichie, but she did wrong by marginalizing Chimamanda under the little knowledge she knew about Africa. “My roomate had a single story of Africa: A single story of catastrophe.

    Read More

  • Things Fall Apart Feminist Analysis

    878 Words  | 4 Pages

    Feminist Theory In Chinua Achebe’s “Things Fall Apart”, they recognize the life of the Igbos which are a tribe in the village of Umuofia during European colonization. There are many topics brought up in this book like the effects of colonization, culture and tradition, religion, race, etc. It is relatively easy to read “Things Fall Apart” as an anti-feminist text due to the face that the Igbo clan’s customs and traditions seem to side towards masculine features, such as power and strength. The novel is told through a male protagonist’s point of view in nineteenth century Nigeria, while women there do not have much rights, they do wield heavy influence over the leaders of the clan.

    Read More

More about Olaudah Equiano Analysis

Open Document