The Middle Passage was a dark stage of history in which Africans were sent on vessels to America as part of the slave trade. Two particular slaves used these dreadful times to their advantage. Putting their experiences into writing, Phillis Wheatley and Olaudah Equiano wrote tremendously successful literary pieces that shaped the abolition movement. In both Equiano’s narrative and Wheatley’s book of poems, they reflect the similar experience of slavery, which greatly shapes the purpose and style of the author’s pieces.

Much like Equiano, Phillis Wheatley was born in an African village. The only good memory recalled of her life in Africa was of her mother performing daily rituals to the rising sun in the mornings. She had the advantage of being purchased by Christian missionaries who were very kind to her. Her owners taught her to read and write, which led her to be the first African American woman to be published as a poet. It also caused her writing to be much more classical with a discreet sense of emotion. She used many allusions and …show more content…
Equiano’s writing puts great detail into his journey through The Middle Passage, where he saw some things that would be hard to forget. He, like Phillis Wheatley, had a very good life compared to the other slaves of their time period. Equiano was able to do interesting work and travel around the world at the same time. Although, he witnesses a handful of horrendous situations in the vessels, which he provides first hand information of to the reader, not sparing many graphic details. He obtained the knowledge of mercantilism from one of his owners, which gave him the ability to buy his own freedom. Eventually, he moved on to be the first slave to publish an autobiography. Writing in the literary style of the 18th century, his narrative speaks for some of the greatest influences of the abolition