I will trust and not be afraid, for the lord jehovah is my strength and my song. The project gutenberg ebook of the interesting narrative of the life. It is the engrossing story in living detail of an igbo prince, his enslavement, and freedom. Olaudah equiano aka gustavus vassa the breaker of chains. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano or gustavus vassa, the african. Olaudah equiano, the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, written by himself, 1791. This enabled him to become a british citizen and he began writing about his experiences. He was born some time around the year 1745 in the kingdom of benin, an area found in presentday nigeria. Olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, written by himself new york. And in that shall ye say, praise the lord, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people. Equiano the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah. It was published in 1789, at a time when its author was wellknown in english abolitionist circles. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, written by himself.
The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african 1789, ch. Classic books library presents this brand new edition of the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, an autobiography published in 1798. During this six or sevenmonth journey, vassa was separated from his. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah pdf printer.
Equiano published his autobiography, the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, in 1789 as a twovolume work. Excerpt from the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah. Full text of the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african. May 23, 2015 the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, written by himself. Equiano traveled the world as a slave to a ship captain and merchant. Enslaved as a child, he was taken to the caribbean and sold as a slave to a royal navy officer. This classic is a must read because olaudah writes as if the reader is right there with him, relating his story, feeling his success and his pains.
The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano or. This book is available for free download in a number of. Proofread and pages added by jonathan perry, march 2001. From an early age, olaudah equiano experienced the horrors of slavery first hand. But, eventually one of his master gave him his freedom. Download touring exhibition equiano an extraordinary life 1745 1797 pdf belowtouring exhibition equiano an extraordinary life 1745 1797 equiano 2019 e.
Andrews spoke of the dramatic increase in scholarly concern with the early period of african american literature. However, i kept asking myself why reading this autobiography felt more like reading gullivers travels than a former slaves account of his life. Olaudah equiano the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african london, 1789. Full text of the interesting narrative of the life of. For the nearly 300 years that preceded olaudah equiano s writing of his life, the international slave trade had shrunk the world like never before. Interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african. A teaching guide from the antislavery literature project, with a crosscultural study guide coauthored by shi penglu. Equianos travels brought him to turkey, martinico, georgia, montserrat. The book describes equiano s time spent in enslavement, and documents his attempts at becoming an. Dec 11, 2018 the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano.
The title says the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano and it certainly was interesting. Olaudah equiano slave narratives aimed from the beginning to counter that sense of otherness with which european and american racism tried to brand people of african descent. About the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavas vassa, the african. Aug 07, 2017 the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano by olaudah equiano is published by norton critical edition. Equiano s autobiography helped in the creation of the slave trade act 1807 which ended the african slave trade for britain and its colonies. In 1773 he accompanied irving on a polar expedition in search of a northeast passage from europe to asia. From olaudah equiano, the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, in henry louis gates, ed. Equiano, olaudah, 1745publication date 1837 publisher boston, i. Olaudah equiano was an african activist, journalist, explorer, writer, seamen merchant, abolitionist, and antislavery campaigner best known for his influence over british abolitionists and his personal account of slavery in his bestselling. How was olaudah involved in the antislavery movement. Summary of the interesting narrative of the life of. Unabridged english value reproduction of the life of olaudah equiano.
The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, written in 1789, details its writers life in slavery, his time spent serving on galleys, the eventual attainment of his own freedom and later success in business. He was sent to barbados, then to colonial virginia, and then sold to a british naval officer. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano. The narrative is argued to represent a variety of styles, such as a slavery narrative, travel narrative, and spiritual narrative. The life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the. Olaudah equiano also known by the name gustavus vassa african writer, formerly a slave, who was involved in the british abolitionist movement to end the slave trade 4. Teaching guide to the interesting narrative of the life of. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano by olaudah equiano.
The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african by olaudah equiano. The interesting life of olaudah equiano or gustavus vassa, the african. The life of olaudah equiano is one of the earliestknown examples of published writing by an african writer and the first influential slave narrative of what became a large literary genre. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano or gustavus vassa the african 1789 born in benin in the late 18th century, equiano was enslaved as a young boy and passed through a variety of experiences, many of them horrible. Pdf the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano or gustavus vassa the african olaudah equiano 1789 map of locations mentioned in the text omitted. African american history from the colonial era to the early republic, 15261790. It is one of the earliestknown examples of published writing by an african writer to be widely read in england. Leader vincent carretta professor of english, university of maryland national humanities center fellow about the seminar. He was sold twice more but purchased his freedom in 1766. Olaudah equiano describes his homeland in west africa. He later worked on board royal navy vessels, receiving an education and converting to christianity. Equiano s travels brought him to turkey, martinico, georgia, montserrat.
Olaudah equiano 1776, camara layes the dark child 1954, maya. Olaudah equiano or gustavus vassa the eighteenth century. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african. Famous black civil rights activists and politicians. The slave traders showed that they wanted to keep the captives alive when they. Exposed injustices and slavery became disputed issue in english parliament. Frontispiece and title page from the interesting narrative of the life of. Slaves were captured in africa, then taken by ship to the west indiesa journey called the middle passage.
The first autobiography written by a former slave, olaudah equiano s the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano is also one of the most widelyread and wellregarded of the slave narrative genre. Welcome to the litcharts study guide on olaudah equiano s the life of olaudah equiano. Equiano wrote his autobiography, the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, in 1789. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african ebook pdf, epub, mobi, prc about the author olaudah equiano c.
Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The life of olaudah equiano chapter x summary and analysis. In 1789, a middleaged africanborn man in london published the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, laying the foundations for new genres of literature and new ways of. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african written by himself language. Through their narratives, olaudah equianos the interesting life of. According to the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or. Olaudah equiano describes national humanities center. Excerpt from the interesting narrative of the life of. It discusses his time spent in slavery, serving primarily on galleys, documents his attempts at becoming an independent man through his study of the bible, and his eventual success in gaining his own freedom and in business thereafter. His autobiography, the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african, first published in 1789 in london, is the autobiography of olaudah equiano. Olaudah equiano, letter to the committee for the abolition of the slave trade, february 7, 1789. Sep, 20 equiano the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano 1.
Incidents in the life of a slave girl amazonclassics edition harriet ann jacobs. The interesting from narrative of the life olaudah equiano olaudah equiano of in the first several chapters, vassa describes how he and his sister were kidnapped from their home in west arrica by slave traders and transported to the 4frtcan coast. Created by the original team behind sparknotes, litcharts are the worlds best literature guides. The interesting narrative olaudah equiano of the life of olaudah equiano background as european colonies in the americas expanded, so did the slave trade. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the. Equiano describes it as the happiest day of his life. Sep 22, 2001 the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african. Equiano thus makes a case for the vibrant cultural life of african peoples, which europeans at the time tended to belittle.
Equiano acknowledges the difficulty of escaping the charge of vanity for writing a memoir, a genre usually dealing in remarkable events. Over the past thirtyfive years, historians, literary critics, and the general public have come to recognize the author of the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african. The life of olaudah equiano study guide from litcharts the. Entitled the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african 1789, the book went through nine editions in his lifetime. The narrative of the interesting life of olaudah equiano 2. Spiritual metaphors of being in olaudah equianos interesting narrativ.
Pdf the life of olaudah equiano ebooks includes pdf. In the mid 1750s when he was about eleven years old, olaudah equiano was captured with his sister by slave traders in presentday southeastern nigeria. I excerpts from the digitized text found at hanover historical texts project and the digitized text found at documenting the american south. Litcharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in the life of olaudah equiano, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african questions and answers discover the community of teachers, mentors and students just like you. Excerpt from olaudah equiano, the interesting narrative of the life of oludah equiano 1789. Text the first object which saluted my eyes when i arrived on the coast was the sea, a slave ship, which was then riding at anchor, and waiting for its cargo. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano study guide contains a biography of olaudah equiano, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. It went through one american and eight british editions during his lifetime. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african is considered the first major slave autobiography in english literature. Proofread and posted by raluca preotu, august 1999. Equianos merging of christianity with english language literacy. Olaudah equiano, letter to james tobin, january 28, 1788. Title the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the africian.
Google is proud to partner with libraries to digitize public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Equiano finally raised enough money to purchase his manumission in july of 1766. Narratives by west africans from the era of the slave trade, edited by philip d. The first slave narrative to garner international attention was the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus. The life of olaudah equiano study guide gradesaver.
Edited and with notes by shelly eversley introduction by robert reidpharr in this truly astonishing eighteenthcentury memoir, olaudah equiano recounts his remarkable life story, which begins when he is kidnapped in africa as a boy and sold into slavery and culminates when he has achieved renown as a british antislavery advocate. The interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african english ed b00lh9mcoa partagezla avec vos amis the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano, or gustavus vassa, the african english ed b00lh9mcoa est tres bien protege contre les infestations et logiciels malveillants. The life of olaudah equiano study guide from litcharts. The life of olaudah equiano by olaudah equiano, paperback. Olaudah equiano 1745 1797 was an 18thcentury african writer and antislavery campaigner. Written by himself as one of the most accomplished english. As he was firmly indebted to the kindness of farmer and king, he continued to sail with them, but now as a paid steward and sailor. Start studying the interesting narrative of the life of olaudah equiano.
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