When he is first confronted with a slave ship and white men, he thinks that these men with different complexions are evil spirits with bad intentions: "I asked them ifwe were not to be eaten by those white men with horrible looks, red faces, and long hair" (54). White men may have seen these
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How does Equiano react to his experience on the slave ship?
About six or seven months after being abducted, Equiano was brought to the coast, where he first encountered a slave ship and white men. As it was for all …
What did Equiano believe about the white men?
Oct 21, 2013 · Equiano described the treatment of the slaves as brutal cruelty. On the ship slaves were chained and had expressions of sorrow and dispirited. They did not look like they wanted to be on that ship, nor did it look like they wanted to live. Equiano was put down under the decks and begins to tell how the smell was so gruesome.
How did Equiano gain his freedom in 1766?
This line is relevant in regards to the whole text because it summarizes how the prisoners were treated on the slave ship on their way to Barbados, which was very different than the way they were treated by their slave masters in Africa. The white men were much more harsh and cruel and this experience foreshadowed what was to come for the ...
What was the Middle Passage like for Equiano?
The ship continued to Georgia. One evening, Equiano was sitting in a yard with some slaves when their master, a cruel man named Dr. Perkins, entered drunk and, with another white man, began to beat Equiano with his fists until he was close to dead. He lay still for hours, stunned and bleeding, and in the morning he was taken to jail.
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This young man was Olaudah Equiano. He and many other Africans, both male and female, were loaded on ships that took them to the British colonies, where they were sold as slaves. Hundreds of people were packed into the lower decks with barely enough room to move during a journey that took at least six weeks. Many died, but Equiano survived.
What did Equiano envy?
Many people grew sick, and the women’s shrieks and the groans of the dying filled the air. Equiano began to envy those who did die. One day the captors had caught a great deal of fish. After the captors ate, they did not give the leftovers to the captives: instead, they threw the rest back into the sea.
Who was Equiano delivered to?
Active Themes. After many days, Equiano changed masters and was delivered to a chieftain with two wives, who spoke his same language and treated him rather well. He was there a month, and was sometimes trusted to wander out of the house, so he attempted to figure out where he was and how he might escape to his home.
Why did Equiano draw children together?
While adults were working in the fields, children often drew together to guard against kidnappers who would sometimes come. One day Equiano saw, from up in a tree, his neighbors being seized by one of them, but he blew an alarm and the children were saved.
Is Equiano a teenager?
While Equiano’s character can often seem mature throughout this narrative, it’s important to remember that, for much of the tale, he is not even a teenager. He is subject to the natural fears and worries of a child and he’s prone to acting impetuously and not strategically or in his best interests.
What happened to Equiano after his daughter died?
After the master’s daughter died, the master went mad, and Equiano was sold again, carried again for many days through many woods and deserts. As he was brought through Africa, he picked up several different languages, which were more similar to each other than European ones.
How does Equiano save himself?
Equiano is saved from having to adapt to these specific customs by being traded and sent away yet again, this time completing the journey across the interior.
What convinced Equiano that he was going to be killed?
The long hair, strange language, and light skin of these men convinced Equiano that they were going to kill him, and he longed to become the lowest slave in his own country. Seeing a furnace burning on the ship, and black people chained around it, he was convinced that he was going to be killed and he fainted.
Was Equiano a slave?
Equiano's early experiences as a slave were not all disagreeable; some families treated Equiano almost as a part of the family. The kind treatment, however, was about to end. About six or seven months after being abducted, Equiano was brought to the coast, where he first encountered a slave ship and white men.
What did Equiano do in 1773?
In 1773, he took part in an expedition to try to discover the Northwest Passage, a route through the arctic to the Pacific Ocean. Back in England, Equiano became an active abolitionist. He lectured against the cruelty of British slaveowners.
Where was Equiano born?
The youngest son of a village leader, Equiano was born among the Ibo people in the kingdom of Benin, along the Niger River. He was "the greatest favourite with [his] mother.". His family expected to follow in his father's footsteps and become a chief, an elder, a judge.
What happened to Equiano and his sister?
This is what happened, one day, while Equiano and his sister were at home alone. Two men and a woman captured the children. Several days later Equiano and his sister were separated. Equiano continued to travel farther and farther from home, day after day, month after month, exchanging masters along the way.
Who captured the children of Equiano?
Two men and a woman captured the children. Several days later Equiano and his sister were separated. Equiano continued to travel farther and farther from home, day after day, month after month, exchanging masters along the way.
Did Equiano and his sister get separated?
Several days later Equiano and his sister were separated. Equiano continued to travel farther and farther from home, day after day, month after month, exchanging masters along the way. Equiano's early experiences as a slave were not all disagreeable; some families treated Equiano almost as a part of the family.
How long did it take for Equiano to get to the coast?
The kind treatment, however, was about to end. About six or seven months after being abducted, Equiano was brought to the coast, where he first encountered a slave ship and white men. As it was for all slaves, the Middle Passage for Equiano was a long, arduous nightmare.
What was Olaudah Equiano's argument against slavery?
Olaudah Equiano’s Argument Against Slavery Was His Life Experience. The Igbo writer wrote honestly about the brutality of his experience—and of the Christian faith that sustained him. Eric Washington. Image: Painting by William Denton / Colorized by Rick Szuecs. Current Issue.
Who was the Christian who wrote the argument against slavery?
Distinguishing itself from the arguments of abolitionists Thomas Clarkson and John Newton, Equiano’s Christian argument against the slave trade and slavery proved historically unique because he wrote about the horror of slavery, having experienced it firsthand.
Who was the chiefest among ten thousand?
Christ was revealed to my soul as the chiefest among ten thousand,” wrote an 18th-century British seaman in 1789 as he reflected on his conversion that occurred five years previously. This Christian was a previously enslaved man known as Gustavus Vassa, who, through writing his own life story, became the founder of a literary movement known as ...
