What makes Equiano's Narritive different from the others.

COMMON THREADS IN SLAVE NARRATIVES

*  appeal to the audience's emotions in the form of a direct address (particular tendency to appeal to a Christian audience) *  vivid description of the violence of slavery -- includes beatings *  reality of sexual abuse (particularly of innocent females) *  separation of family and disregard for slave marriages -- contradiction of racial stereotypes of the period *  dishonest owners who regularly promise freedom and then disregard their promises vs. kind, honest whites  *  slave's desire for freedom and education --contradiction of racial stereotypes of the period *  stories detailing the impact of slavery on the humanity of slaves and their owners  *  success stories that inspire

DIRECT APPEAL TO CHRISTIAN SENSIBILITY -- "O, ye nominal Christians! might not an African ask you-- Learned you this from your God, who says unto you, Do unto all men as you would men should do unto you?  Is it not enough that we are torn from our country and friends to toil for your luxury and lust of grain?  Must every tender feeling be likewise sacrificed to your avarice?  Are the dearest friends and relations, now rendered more dear by their separation from their kindred, still to be parted from each other . . . Why are parents to lose their children, brothers their sisters, or husbands their wives?  Surely this is a new refinement in cruelty . . . " ( 763 -4).  This direct address asks the audience to think about the horrors of slavery both as Christians and people with families and friends.  A dual appeal was common in slave narratives because the author is fully aware of the prejudices and values of  his or her audience.  Africans were viewed as beasts by much of society, but this type of rhetoric forces the white audience to think about the feelings expressed by this "beast."  He doesn't sound uncivilized or uncaring about family ties.  He doesn't seem immoral and lacking in coherent thought.  He is not what the stereotype says he should be, and this could be very disturbing to a society that depended on its ability to rationalize slavery by dehumanizing the slaves.  

Equiano also relies on his Christianity to give him the strength to survive his ordeal, telling himself that he will be free if and when God wills it.

VIVID DESCRIPTION OF CRUELTY AND VIOLENCE --  Equiano describes the Middle Passage as a hellish period, providing details about the horrific conditions on the slave ship that killed thousands of slaves before they reached the shores of their new home.  Equiano's mention of the slave woman wearing the muzzle is brief, and his reaction is straightforward ("I was much shocked and astonished . . ."), but the purpose is clear.  How can a civilized audience hear of such atrocities and not be equally shocked and horrified?  He mentions the daily starvation and suffering of other slaves; he speaks of dreadful punishments (men are beaten, burned, hanged, and "staked to the ground, and cut most shockingly, and then his ears cut off bit by bit" - 773). Equiano imagines the effect of these details on his audience, and thus, he begins chapter 6 by informing the reader that he will not spend any more time detailing the torture of slaves "so frequent, and so well known . . . that it cannot any longer afford novelty to recite them" (774).

SEXUAL ABUSE OF INNOCENT FEMALE SLAVES -- One of the most poignant moments of Equiano's narrative is his separation from his beloved sister.  And although this moment is important for its emotional appeal, Equiano also uses this circumstance to make a statement about the possible fates awaiting his innocent sister.  Of course, she could die from any number of diseases, but another concern is that her "innocence and virtues" may have "fallen victims to the violence of the African trader" (758).  When placed in the context of his anguish about his inability to protect his sister, this uncertainty magnifies Equiano's pain, a realistic pain that his audience is forced to confront.  He mentions the "violent depredations on the chastity of female slaves" that he has witnessed and questions the logic that makes it a crime for a black man and a white women to have consensual sex but allows "whites to rob an innocent African girl of her virtue" (773).  The sexual danger to a woman who is also a piece of property is obvious.

CONTRAST BETWEEN WHITE CHARACTERS -- Equiano provides a listing of owners and makes it clear that he feels indebted to the whites who practiced Christian kindness and helped him to learn valuable skills, allowed him to take advantage of business opportunities, and introduced him to Christ.  Equiano catalogues several white friends whom he considered instrumental to his character development.   Richard Baker befriended Equiano and helped him adjust to a new culture and language; he was a man '"Who was not ashamed to notice, to associate with, and to be a friend and instructor of one who was ignorant, a stranger, of a different complexion, and a slave" (766).   The Miss Guerins taught him to read and arranged Equiano's baptism.  Daniel Queen taught him to read from the Bible.  Robert King taught him invaluable sailing skills, treated Equiano and his other slaves kindly, and eventually fulfilled his promise and allowed Equiano to buy his freedom.  Thomas Farmer nursed Equiano back to health when he was beaten by cruel white men and played an instrumental role in King's decision to allow Equiano his freedom.  To provide a contrast to this list of good whites, Equiano also tells of the cruel Dr. Perkins who nearly beat him to death because he didn't like "to see strange negroes in his yard" (782).    Although Equiano gives us plenty of examples of cruel slave owners and kind slave owners, he only provides us with one personal example of an owner who promised him freedom and then sold him:  Daniel Queen, the man who taught him to read from the Bible and told him that he was "as free as himself, or any other man on board" (769).  But even this dishonest act is played down a bit when Equiano later learned that Queen asked that he be sold to the best possible master because he "was a very deserving boy" (770).

DESIRE FOR FREEDOM AND EDUCATION -- From the moment of his capture, Equiano longs to be free, and soon "education and freedom" are his daily mantra.  He takes what he can from the people around him, picking up new dialects and languages while still in Africa and learning everything possible about sailing, reading, and religion from his captors.  He begins to trade small quantities of imported goods to raise money with which to purchase his freedom, telling his friend that "life had lost its relish when liberty was gone" (777).  When he secures the necessary forty pounds and is eventually allowed to purchase his freedom, he describes his feelings in rapturous terms:  " . . .who could do justice to my feelings at this moment!  Not conquering heroes themselves, in the midst of a triumph -- Not the tender mother who has just regained her lost infant, and presses it to her heart -- Not the weary, hungry, mariner, at the sight of the desired friendly port --Not the lover, when he once more embraces his beloved mistress, after she has been ravished from his arms!  All within my breast was tumult, wildness, and delirium!  My feet scarcely touched the ground, for they were winged with joy . . " (785).

And this could be the end of Equiano's slave narrative and the beginning of his autobiography as a free man of color, but he chooses to provide his readers with the words of his manumission papers as it "has something peculiar in it, and expresses the absolute power and dominion one man claims over his fellow" (785).  Why does he end on this note?  Hasn't he achieved his ultimate goal?  On paper, perhaps, but if we recall the tale of Joseph Clipson, the mulatto man who was carried away into slavery even though he had been born a free man, and Equiano's reaction to Clipson's abduction:  "Hitherto I had thought slavery only dreadful, but the state of a free negro appeared to me now equally so, and in some respects even worse, for they live in constant alarm for their liberty . . .a mockery of freedom" (779).  Does his piece of paper protect Equiano from the institution of slavery?  

INSPIRATIONAL SUCCESS STORIES -- Equiano himself is the biggest source of inspiration in his tale.  In what has often been termed the African version of Franklin's American Dream success stories, this freed slave epitomizes everything espoused by Franklin as necessary for success:  moral character, religious faith, hard work, and determination.