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Olaudah Equiano Research Paper

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Olaudah Equiano and William Wilberforce
From 1807 in Britain to 1865 in the United States the process and finalization of the abolishing of slavery began with Olaudah Equiano and William Wilberforce.
Born in Igbo land, also known as Southeastern Nigeria, in 1745 Olaudah Equiano had no idea that his future would be filled with separation from his family, being bought and sold, and forced labor. Olaudah Equiano was around 12 years old when he was kidnapped and sold into slavery he first arrived in England from Igbo land. Part of that time he stayed at Blackheath in London with the Guerin family, relatives of Captain Pascal who bought Equiano, where at this point he learned to was read and write. Equiano then had to be put on the middle passage on a slave ship to the New World, which was the western hemisphere, after he was shipped from Barbados. This isn’t the only traveling he did. In 1763 which Equiano was approximately 18, he was sold by Captain Pascal to Captain James Duran and taken to Montserrat in the Caribbean Islands. He was then sold to the island's most primary merchant, Robert King. Because slavery …show more content…

He travelled a lot. To the Mediterranean, the Atlantic and the Arctic as he attempted to reach the North Pole. When returning to London, he came into contact with an anti-slavery campaigner, Granville Sharp when Equiano had heard his friend, John Annis, a former African American cook and a freed slave, was kidnapped by John’s former owner. Equiano and Sharp tried to save Annis but didn’t make it.
In 1775 Equiano travelled to the Caribbean and to set up a new plantation society on the coast of Central America. Equiano did everything to create a comfortable condition of the enslaved people that was brought to work on the plantation. Because at one point Equiano was badly mistreated. A slave trader tried to enslave him, but Equiano managed to escape in a

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Thus, we can see how each story of the captives help reveal the different feelings one might have while being held and dehumanized like Equiano and Rowlandson were. This is important because both rowlandson and Equiano were subject to torture, humiliation, and slavery. So, how would you react if you had someone you loved being subject to all these horrible, abusive

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The worst bearing of both Rowlandson and Equiano has to face was being separated from their own love ones. Rowlandson was separated from her family and relations when her village was attacked then eventually lost her only child that was with her. Nevertheless, Equiano also endured tormented pain when he was parted from his sister while she was the only comfort to him at once. He was a young boy in a fearful atmosphere with nothing to convey a positive perspective. “It was vain that [they] besought than not to part us; she was torn from [him], and immediately carried away, while [he] was left in a state of distraction not to be describe”.

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In 1757, he was purchased by a naval commander for about £40, who named him Gustavas Vassa. Equiano was around 12 when he initially touched base in England. For part of that time he remained at Blackheath in London with the Guerin family. It is here that Equiano learnt how to read and write and to do

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The Abolitionist Movement was a movement to abolish slavery. The abolitionist movement started 10 years after the American Revolution in the 1830’s and didn’t end until about four decades later in the 1870’s. Three main people that helped with the movement were Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and Harriet Beecher Stowe. These men played an important part in this movement because if it weren’t for them slavery wouldn’t have ended until later on. Some Abolitionist were slave masters themselves, but then later on realized it was wrong and worked with all the Abolitionist to abolish slavery.

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Equiano left Montserrat to go to London by signing up with Captain John Hamer onboard his ship (Equiano, 122). In London, Equiano tried to work as a servant for the Miss Querins, but instead they got him a job working as a hairdresser in Coventry Court. During this time, Equiano learned how to be a hairdresser while bettering his arithmetics (Equiano,

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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

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Throughout the book we see occasions on how Equiano was lucky such as, he was able to buy his freedom, tried to run away and was not punished, and was able to improve his education. Equiano accomplished to gain his freedom which is something that most slaves found impossible to do. One of the reasons Equiano was able to buy his freedom is because of his captain. For example “ I verily believe I should not have obtained my freedom when I did; and it not improbable that I might not have been able to get it any rate afterwards.” (The Interesting Narrative of Oladuah Equiano p.107)

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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

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Coming to Europe did not only give Equiano freedom from slavery but also a Christian faith. However, his belief was not easy but just simple accepted the mercy of the almighty God, the humiliation of Lord Jesus Christ and God’s love to hear his prayer for someone who is sinful living man. First and for most, Equiano said “I began seriously to reflect on the dangers I had escaped, particularly those of my last voyage, which made a lasting impression on my mind, and, by the grace of God, proved afterwards a mercy to me; it caused me to reflect deeply on my eternal state, and to seek the Lord with full purpose of heart ere it was too late. I rejoiced greatly; and heartily thanked the Lord for directing me to London, where I was determined to work

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He belonged to an affluent and prosperous family in which his father was a well-reverenced man in the community who made decisions for the village. His father had many slaves as well but Equiano denoted that these slaves were treated like family as compared to the evil system of slavery that Europeans controlled. In Equiano’s society, everyone collaborated and the land flourished. The land was fruitful and benevolent, the soil was opulent and agriculture was productive. Many crops were cultivated, and everyone had a concrete part in society such as women spinning cotton and making garments.

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Great observation, in the reading I found several shocking events in our reading and unfortunately, I wasn’t able to elaborate on each one, but I agree with your surprising event that, slavery existed long before the Europeans arrived on the shores of West Africa and long before the 20 slaves arrived in Jamestown in 1619 (Robin, Kelley & Lewis, 2005,). For the most part, in my earlier education my understanding that slavery started when Christopher Columbus discover America. Therefore, to learned in the reading that other Africans were assisting the Europeans in capturing fellow Africans from different tribes made me angry. Therefore, when I read the story about Olauda Equiano were kidnap by Africans from different tribe really gave me a clear

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My name is Olaudah Equiano. I was born in the Eboe of Africa. While I was just a young child, my sister and I were taken by kidnappers and they sold us to these slave traders. This was the worst and terrifying day of my life. I was sent to the West Indies or the island of Barbados.

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