...Olaudah Equiano was a man that went through hell and back. Throughout his life time he experienced slavery, pain, and loneliness. Equiano wrote of this amazing and detailed journey and shared the things he saw and experienced throughout his life. In this essay I will be talking about his journey in two ways. The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, he explains his detailed experience and in his biography it explains less details about Equiano but it goes into detail when it comes to location, facts, and slave work force. In my essay I will compare and contrast the differences and similarities between the interesting narrative of Olaudah Equiano and his biography. I will prove that Equiano interesting narrative is true based off the comparison of his biography....
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...Olaudah autobiography was very inspirational but very disconsolate. Olaudah speaks about being deprived from education, most slaves presented their stories to ghost writers. Equiano was very intelligent, honest, well spoken. Many believed that Africans were not human, and they endured many hardships. Equiano’s story would be sufficient to wipe off the stigma attached to Africans (73). Equiano life was very fascinating to European and Americans spectators. The book proves that Africans are capable of reading and writing. Equiano’s writing goes far beyond anthropological interest: combing elements of the travelogue, spiritual autobiography, and antislavery argument, Equiano, Equiano combined genres to create a new prototype which slave narratives...
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...of the villainous Middle Passage, one of the very first narratives from a slave, a story that gave the hatchling abolitionist movement a buzzing moral influence; except it may not be exact. Therein lays the mystery: Because if the gentleman who penned "The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavas Vassa, the African" was not born in Africa, but rather born into slavery in South Carolina -- as Vincent Carretta suggests -- then who was he? Where did he learn to speak fluent Igbo? And how did he obtain such agonizing details about life aboard an 18th-century slave vessel? The air soon became unfit for respiration, from a variety of loathsome smells, and brought on a sickness among the slaves, of which many died, thus falling victims to the improvident avarice, as I may call it, of their purchasers. This wretched situation was again aggravated by the galling of the chains. . . . The shrieks of the women, and the groans of the dying, rendered the whole a scene of horror almost inconceivable. (Equiano, 1789) In that lies the controversy: Carretta's findings, detailed in his biography of Equiano, have ignited a blaze in academic life, for the most part among those who have extensively considered Equiano the "black Ben Franklin" all on the weight of his auto biography. Given that Equiano's was in print first, Carretta argues that Franklin should be called the "White Equiano." No one questions that Equiano was the ultimate self-made man, cultured, and intellectual...
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...William Bradford and Olaudah Equiano write about their ideas and terrors to white settlers and new generations on their way to America. In “The Interesting Narrative about the Life of Olaudah Equiano” Olaudah Equiano did not have a choice but to come to America but in “Of Plymouth Plantation” William Bradford leaves America in search of new laws and ways of living. Olaudah Equiano somehow found a way to write down his descriptions about what happened and what he saw. At 11 years old, Equiano was kidnapped from his home. Being separated from his family you would think he would have been terrified. In The Interesting Life of Olaudah Equiano, instead of being negative he explains the things he saw for the very first time in his life “I first saw flying fishes, which surprised me very much..” Equiano’s new journey was “heightened” he saw the land of the Barbados and the clouds looked like land to him as they sailed. (Equiano 174) Once arriving in America Equiano “We were conducted immediately to the merchant's yard..” (Equiano 175) had to begin working....
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...be able to practice their own beliefs so they went on a long and hard journey across the Atlantic to start a new and free life in America. The colonist almost didn’t make it but what kept them going was their dream of being able to live a life of freedom of religion. Another lesson that readers can learn is that people should be thankful because their situation could always be worse. Even though these stories don’t exactly talk about thinking positive and being thankful they still portray this message. The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, this narrative is educating readers about the life of a slave. Equiano uses a lot of detail in his story to inform how inhumane and foul being a slave on a slave ship was. Readers learn to appreciate what they have through hearing this story because their situation is probably not as bad as Olaudah Equianos. La Relacion, Of Plymouth Planation and The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano all include strong messages and lessons to the readers. One lesson is that you should never give up and always fight for what you believe in or believe is right. Another lesson that I learned is that I should be thankful for what I have and appreciate my...
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...the recording of an event or by leading a revolution.” In my essay the person who will be the topic is “Olaudah Equiano”. I am to choose an individual and discuss their impact on world history. Olaudah Equiano, who was born 1745 in West Africa, contributed to a ton of accomplishments. He was an abolitionist and former slave who was the author of “The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano”; Written by Himself. Equiano’s Narrative told the story of his capture and life in bondage. At 11 years old, while caring for the family compound, he was kidnaped along with his sister. The two were taken away from the place where they grew up, and sold to the neighborhood slave traders. Following a concise time of remains in Africa, in 1755 Equiano was captured and sold to the European slave brokers, who then transported him over the Atlantic to Barbados in the West Independents in 1756. In Virginia, Equiano was bought by Michael Pascal, a lieutenant in the Royal Navy. Pascal gave Equiano the name of Gustavus Vassa, which stayed with him for the better part of his lifetime. Domestic slaves in...
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...fact “born and bred up in the Danish Island of Santa Cruz (St. Croix), in the West Indies” (Lovejoy 173). However, not only does Equiano repeatedly state that he was born in Africa, the entirety of the first chapter of his autobiography is filled with anecdotes and cultural rituals he remembers from living in Africa that he would not have known...
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...Squanto help the colonists? 4. What conditions did the Pilgrims face on the First Thanksgiving? 5. Who is the author? from Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God 5. What feeling does the author hope to inspire in his listeners? 6. Who is the audience? 7. Who is the author? from The General History of Virginia 8. How was Smith saved form death in Powhatan’s court? 9. Why were the Native Americans important to the colonists? 10. What does Smith’s description of giving gifts to the Native Americans reveal about his attitude toward them? 11. Who is the author? from The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano 12. How can we tell that the slave traders wanted to keep the captives alive? 13. Why did Equiano fear the sailors? 14. In what ways were the sailors cruel? 15. Why was Equiano whipped? 16. According to Equiano, what added to the horror of slavery? 17. Who is the author? The World on the Turtle’s Back 18. Why does the man go to the Great Tree at the beginning of the myth? 19. Why is the Great Tree important to the Iroquois’ creation myth? 20. What does this creation myth explain about the Iroquois dance rituals? 21. What do the arrows that the man brings to the girl represent? 22. What does the twins’ competition to make animals in this creation myth explain? 23. What does the gods’ reaction to the woman’s fall tell you about the role of the gods in Iroquois culture? 24. Why is the diversity...
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...Olaudah Equiano’s The interesting narrative of Olaudah Equiano was an interesting inspiring read about his life.He starts the narrative, establishing credibility by saying he’s not writing this for fame or fortune and saying that he isn't a hero but this is his life. He was born in Eboe or Esseka in 1745 and was kidnapped with his sister when he was young. He speaks on the customs, practices and lifestyle of his people. He changes master frequently and eventually taken aboard a slaveship. He tries to remain hopeful throughout slavery going from around Africa to North America to England. He meets Michael Henry Pascal who grows fond of him and buys him for some friends back in England. On his way to England, his name changes to Gustavus Vassa...
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...The effects of transatlantic travel inevitably lead to a sense of homelessness. In Crèvecœur’s Letters from an American Farmer, and Olaudah Equiano’s The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, the writing revolves around characters who essentially do not have homes, both dealing with transatlantic settings. Equiano is consistently stripped of his home, starting in Africa, and is perpetually forced to adapt in new environments. Crèvecœur’s narrative depicts a new American settler, James, who comes from England, and is in the liminal state of homelessness, from settling into his new land to eventually fleeing his estate. The piece that displays homelessness a lot more overtly is The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, where Equiano immediately gets taken from his home, igniting his life of disarray. In order to convey this theme of homelessness, it is important to outline the various instances leading up to it: “...two men and a woman got over our walls, and in a moment seized us both, and, without giving us time to cry out, or make resistance, they stopped our mouths, and ran off with us into the nearest wood” (The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, p.47). It is in this moment that Equiano will henceforth struggle to maintain some semblance...
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...The primary purpose of historical narratives is to report as accurately as possible what happened at each particular place and time in history. But each of the writers in this unit (De Vaca, Bradford, and Equiano) went beyond merely reporting the facts; they had other, more personal reasons for writing what they did. Each of them had a personal agenda. Equiano’s personal agenda in The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano was to shame his white audience into abolishing the slave trade by describing the horrible events that took place on the ship. While he did state facts about the ship, Equiano described personal experiences to persuade the audience more. For example, Equiano describes the smell of the hold as being “…so intolerably loathsome, that it was dangerous to...
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...ANALYSIS OF THOMAS CLARSKON’S AND OLAUDAH EQUIANO’S ABOLISHMENT WORKS “The real names of our people were destroyed during slavery. The last name of my forefathers was taken from them when they were brought to America and made slaves, and then the name of the slave master was given, which we refuse, we reject that name today and refuse it. I never acknowledge it whatsoever.”- Malcolm X. Slavery is one of the biggest wounds that have never fully healed and thanks to some very brave and important people, slavery has been abolished and it was because people like both Thomas Clarkson and Olaudah Equiano were abolitionist writers, Thomas Clarkson was able to bring the truth of slavery to the forefront of people minds as he was working hard to help abolish slavery, Olaudah wrote a biography about himself and it details what happened to him as a slave and how he was able to change his life after he bought his freedom; Thomas Clarkson was able to write his essay and be able to prove his findings because he traveled 35,000 miles interviewing both the slave owners and the slaves. Slavery will never be banished from our hearts and souls because it left such a jagged scar, but some of the people who were brave enough to face the injustice helped soften the blow. Thomas Clarkson and Olaudah Equiano were both abolitionist writers, Clarkson with his essay and Equiano with his biography. Thomas Clarkson wrote an essay titled “Essay on Slavery and Commerce of the Human Species.” In his essay...
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...Emmanuel Obeng Professor Rosalie Yezbick LITR220 25 March, 2016 Course Reflection It has been an amazing eight weeks of intense but fun time learning about American Literature. There were some awesome topics, essays and readings that were my favorites. However, there were also some few topics that even though were interesting to read were my least favorite. The body of this essay is going to be talking about my three favorite as well as my three least topic, essays, forums and reading throughout the course. My first is Anti-Slavery and Slave Narratives in week seven forum, some of the challenges Linda Brent faced while she lived under Flint. While reading, “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” it actually made me feel very sad for this...
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...Literature. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2004. OPTIONAL REFERENCES Locke, Alain, ed. The New Negro. New York: Atheneum, 1968. hooks, bell. Teaching to Trangress: Education as the Practice of Freedom. New York: Routledge, 1994. Harrold, Stanley. American Abolitionists. New York: Pearson Education, 2001. Youngs, J. William T. American Realities: Historical Episodes-From First Settlements to the Civil War. New York: Longman, 2000. Fanon, Frantz. The Wretched of the Earth. New York: Grove Press, 1963. COURSE DESCRIPTION: A survey of African American literature, introducing students to genres, trends, and major periods of African American literature, ranging from the 17th-, 18th- and 19th- century autobiographies and narratives to 20tth –century works. Authors include: Jupiter Hammon, Briton Hammon, Sojourner Truth, Nat Turner, Claude McKay, Zora Neale Hurston, Sterling Brown, Richard Wright, Lorraine Hansberry, Amiri Baraka, Toni Morrison, Haki Madhubuti, Ton Cade Bambara, and August Wilson. COURSE OBJECTIVES By the end of this course, you will: o be able to distinguish amongst genres of literature; o be familiar with various works by and about African American writers in various literary genres; o be familiar with the Black Aesthetic, as well as other literary theories; o gain...
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...Course Number and Title: American Literature 1 Number of Credits: 3 Instructor Name: Sos Bagramyan Email Address: sbagramyan@aua.am Telephone Number: 51 27 69 Office Location: Paramaz Avedisian Building, 132W Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 8am-9am Term/Year: Spring 2015 ENGL 120 – American Literature 1 This survey course introduces students to American literature from the beginning of European contact to the present, focusing on major authors and different literary genres. It examines the historical influences on the evolution of this body of literature and the construction of a distinct and complex American identity. Through close reading, class discussion and their own research and writing, students will explore how themes such as gender, race, class, spirituality, economics, and the environment play a role in the formation and evolution of the American experience Three hours of instructor-led class time per week. Required Materials: All readings are located in PDF format on our course’s Moodle page. Academic Integrity: All graded assignments must completed individually. Plagiarism is a serious offense, and any attempt to pass off another person's ideas and writings as your own will result in severe disciplinary measures, possibly expulsion from the university. This also applies to your Informal Responses, which should reflect your own understanding of the material and not simply repeat what I or your classmates have already said. Students are required...
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