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Similarities Between Mary Prince And Olaudah Equiano

1321 Words6 Pages

Slavery is still a concept that the horror and brutality that is learned about in books become just another set of facts to be assimilated impassively to continue working through large course loads of material to be memorized. Dispassionate and clinical summations of the lives of the allowed for the harshness of the existences of those in bondage to become words on a page since modern society is not exposed to those experiences any longer. However, first-hand recollections by former slaves, such as Mary Prince and Olaudah Equiano, somehow make the realities conveyed to become less opaque and more tangible. Mary Prince and Olaudah Equiano were both subjected to being slaves based on the color of their skin. Susanna Strickland, who wrote Prince’s …show more content…

This essay will use The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian Slave and The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African to discover what life events overlap between the two slaves and where their differences can be identified by concentrating on three areas: how they came to be slaves, how they were treated by their masters, and how they gained their …show more content…

He was raised to be a warrior, “I was trained up from my earliest years in the art of war; my daily exercise was shooting and throwing javelins; and my mother adorned me with emblems, after the manner of our greatest warriors” (Equiano 47). He was intended to be a leader; a defender of his people, but instead he was forced down a different path. His sister and himself were kidnapped when he was only eleven years old, to be sold into slavery themselves. Prince and Equiano, for all their differences of how they came to slavery, are connected by the commonality of the fact that were ripped from their families and forced to endure their lives as best as they were

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Both Mary and Equiano suffered greatly upon their being taken. They both endured mental, physical, and emotional distress at being torn from their families and friends. Equiano was only a child when he was taken from his village, away from everything and everyone he had ever known, so the natural fear of parental separation would be terrifying in itself. Many years later, as he was being shipped overseas, he witnessed the cruel and inhumane treatment of innocent people. In describing the living conditions of the slave ship, Equiano states, “The shrieks of the women, and the groans of the dying, rendered the whole a scene of horror almost inconceivable” (Equiano 1279).

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Nayeli Mota Ms. Frankenburg AP U.S. History 17 August 2014 The History of Mary Prince (1) Mary Prince was born on a farm belonging to Mr. Myners, alongside her Mother and Father who were his slaves. As an infant Mr. Myners died and she was sold along with her mother to a new household away from her father, where he was sold elsewhere.

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After the first slaves were brought in by the British more and more Africans were sought out. They became like a commodity for those that could afford to purchase them. Regardless, of their sex in the eyes of the law they were viewed and treated as property. Unfortunately, all black men, women and children equally shared devastating experiences during their time as a slave. On one side they were all separated form both their families and their homeland.

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On the other hand, Equino’s situation and attitude deteriorate as he is moved into ever stranger and more dehumanizing circumstances. Both captives were allowed to earn money: in fact, Equiano eventually earned enough to buy his freedom. Mary, too, was eventually freed when her ransom was

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Compare And Contrast Equiano And Mrs Rowlandson

770 Words | 4 Pages

Equiano narrated, “One day, when all our people were gone out to their works as usual, and I and my dear sister were left to mind the house, 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.” (Baym, 677) Unlike Rowlandson, Equiano was not held for ransom, after being captured he was sold into the American slave trade. Both Rowlandson and Equiano were separated from their families, and moved numerous times during their captivity. Remarkably enough, during the times they were relocated, they both were reunited with a family member for a period of time. Rowlandson was reunited with her daughter, while Equiano was reunited with his

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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.

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Olaudah Equiano's Interesting Narrative

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Narrative Chapter One Olaudah Equiano’s Interesting Narrative, is a special case of literature history. Years before the writings of Fredrick Douglass, it spoke of the horrible truths of slavery to persuade its readers to listen to its reason. Though Equiano’s authenticity to his story being that of his own life can be questionable at times, his writings still strive for the greater purpose of “promoting the interest of humanity” (688). Equiano starts the first chapter and the beginning of his story explaining the life he had in Africa.

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In the 1700-1800’s, the use of African American slaves for backbreaking, unpaid work was at its prime. Despite the terrible conditions that slaves were forced to deal with, slave owners managed to convince themselves and others that it was not the abhorrent work it was thought to be. However, in the mid-1800’s, Northern and southern Americans were becoming more aware of the trauma that slaves were facing in the South. Soon, an abolitionist group began in protest, but still people doubted and questioned it.

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Frederick Douglass Use And Abuse Of Power Essay

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The Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass shows the imbalance of power between slaves and their masters. In his book, Douglass proves that slavery is a destructive force not only to the slaves, but also for the slaveholders. “Poison of the irresponsible power” that masters have upon their slaves that are dehumanizing and shameless, have changed the masters themselves and their morality(Douglass 39). This amount of power and control in contact with one man breaks the kindest heart and the purest thoughts turning the person evil and corrupt. Douglass uses flashbacks that illustrate the emotions that declare the negative effects of slavery.

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588 Words | 3 Pages

Olaudah Equiano was one of the most famous black men in the history of slavery who was lucky enough to purchase his freedom by himself. Equiano was highly popular for his autobiography named The interesting narrative of the life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, the African. This is an interesting autobiographywhich was published in 1789 and it emphasized various aspects of slavery throughout the entire book. In The Interesting Narrative, Olaudah Equiano uses poetic diction and tone ( sadistic) to illustrate his perspective as a slave by portraying the cruality and brutality of slavery. Equiano was very disappointed with his master’s betrayal.

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Mary Prince West Indian Slave Analysis

190 Words | 1 Pages

In her narrative The History of Mary Prince, a West Indian slave, related by herself, published in 1831. Mary Prince writes, 'I have been a slave, I have felt what a slave feels and I know what a slave knows and I would have all the good people in England to know it too, what a slave has felt and suffered.' Mary Prince's account of her life gives us an insight into the life of an enslaved woman in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

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Frederick Douglass’s narrative provides a first hand experience into the imbalance of power between a slave and a slaveholder and the negative effects it has on them both. Douglass proves that slavery destroys not only the slave, but the slaveholder as well by saying that this “poison of irresponsible power” has a dehumanizing effect on the slaveholder’s morals and beliefs (Douglass 40). This intense amount of power breaks the  kindest heart and changes the slaveholder into a heartless demon (Douglass 40). Yet these are not the only ways that Douglass proves what ill effect slavery has on the slaveholder. Douglass also uses deep characterization, emotional appeal, and religion to present the negative effects of slavery.

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From this, derives a bond with the reader that pushes their understanding of the evil nature of slavery that society deemed appropriate therefore enhancing their understanding of history. While only glossed over in most classroom settings of the twenty-first century, students often neglect the sad but true reality that the backbone of slavery, was the dehumanization of an entire race of people. To create a group of individuals known for their extreme oppression derived from slavery, required plantation owner’s of the South to constantly embedded certain values into the lives of their slaves. To talk back means to be whipped.

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The book “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” showed the female perspective on slavery, female suffering and oppression not only from the point of view of the distant observer but from the perspective of the person directly participating in those events. The period of slavery was long lasting in America until its abolition after the end of the American Civil War in 1865 finally granting freedom and independence to slaves. Many literary works have been written about slavery and experiences of slaves but few resources are available presenting slavery through the eyes of females rather than males. On the one hand, slavery was terrible and distressing for both men and women, but women experienced sexual exploitation and oppression in addition

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