1. Equiano titles his work “interesting”; what might readers of the 1700s have found interesting? Is it still interesting today?
Equiano intended to show the cruelty of the slave trade, but since his target audience was the upper-class white males, he had to incorporate maritime details among other personal experiences to not only prove that he was a loyal British subject but also make the narrative interesting. As such, the readers of the 1700s might have found his description of the Middle Passage interesting. Today, readers may be interested in finding out about the slave trade. However, the writing used by Equiano is difficult to get through, thus making the narrative less interesting for the 21st Century.
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2. At the beginning of the excerpt, Equiano states that his “father, besides many slaves, had a numerous family”; what do you think about Equiano’s family owning slaves? How might this have changed Equiano’s perception of his own bondage?
During that time, owning slaves meant that families could accommodate people who may not have been from their family, and those slaves would come with positive or negative motives. Having slaves changed the perception of Equiano in that he felt that one could be accommodative to other people despite their racial or ethnic background.
3. Equiano shares childhood recollections at the beginning of this excerpt; what impact might these details have on the reader?
The significant impact on the readers is that they can understand that at those times, people grew up in diverse environments. Again, in most cases, people struggled to get basic needs, but despite this, people enjoyed life. The issue of responsibility is also brought into the mind of the reader.
4. What types of imagery does Equiano use to describe the Middle Passage? Is this an effective literary technique for this particular work? Why or why not?
The types of imagery used in chapter two are visual and auditory imagery. The literary technique of this particular work was effective because it created a good and clear mental picture of the situation that the author went through during his childhood and when he was kidnapped and served under different masters.
5. How do Equiano and other slaves describe what is new or mysterious during their passage? How do these descriptions make the reader feel about Equiano’s situation?
The reader could be feeling pity for Equiano because when with other slaves, the language barrier was the biggest challenge. He was not able to share anything with other slaves, and the only thing that he wished to happen was death more than anything else. When he saw a woman, who was loaded with metals, the author’s thoughts is that he could be the next person to go through the same.
6. Equiano’s account conveys his feelings of fear, desperation, awe, and sadness; why not anger?
Equiano was still in the adolescent stage when he was being sold from one master to the other, and some of them almost treated him like a peer. As such, due to his age, he would not express anger, but he feared that the worst would happen to him, especially in the ship because the whites and Africans living in the coast were very cruel.
7. Equiano’s narration style shifts during this excerpt; where does this happen, and for what purpose?
The shift happens in page 45, where the author starts to give a detailed explanation of how they were kidnapped with his sister to when he reached the coast near the sea. The purpose of this was to introduce a new scenario and environment as well as a new theme.
8. Should the reader consider Equiano, a reliable narrator? Why or why not?
Indeed the reader should consider Equiano a reliable narrator as he chronologically narrates events that occurred during his life. He also aggressively recounts the horrors of the slave trade to capture the attention of his audience.
9. What is Equiano arguing when he states:
“ 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 gain? Must every tender feeling be likewise sacrificed to your avarice?
Equiano implies that sometimes it is very hard for one to treat you the way you treated them and, in most cases, it is due to superiority among those who are in authority and the decision-makers. The reason was that he had been kidnapped, and now he was mistreated at the expense of luxury for the oppressors.
