Presentation of the Figure of the Slave in the Romance Era Essay

launching of the Figure of the Slave in the Romance Era - Essay ExampleThrough his ability to bring up John Milton and the Bible, important secular and religious books, he surprised the public with its high literary tone and caused many to seriously question what theyd been told. Approximately ten years after Equianos work was published, Robert Southeby wrote his poem The sailor boy Who Had Served in the Slave Trade. The poem captures the essence of a at sea soul dealing with the guilt of his retiring(a) treatment of slaves, for his failure to recognize them as humans and also Gods chosen creatures. By exposing the progression of the lost sailors great sin, Southeby provides a glimpse into the general attitudes of the British people, showing a strong shift in understanding from the past to Southebys present. Both works make use of contrasts to combat common beliefs that Africans were a break dance species more like animals by showing them instead to have equal or greater smar t capacity, to have a civilized frame of mind, and to be included within the Christian example of existence. designate of Intellectual Capacity Just the idea that he was able to write his own story, without requiring someone else to set down what he said, made Equaino different from many other former slaves whose stories have been immortalized. While all hold up stories of slave experiences are considered valuable Their literacy, accompanied with their position as former slaves, provides their narratives with an added sense of authenticity and self-assurance on the subject of the slave trade (Gunn, 2007 6), Equianos was different. He did it with such a high degree of attainment that the British, expecting to find a relatively amateur accounting, instead found themselves fully engaged in a thrilling story of adventure... Taken together, Equiano and Southeby provide a clear way to look at the everyday attitudes and beliefs about slaves at that time. They do this by exploring co ncepts of individual intellectual pursuit, culture and society, and their characters position within the framework of the Christian church. Equiano proved he was an intelligent individual, capable of expressing himself to the most educated of English society with attainment and persuasively, when he wrote his book. He brought into question whether Africans could be trained to be on a par with whiten people intellectually speaking, which further questioned whether Africans were truly an inferior, more animal species. Although Southebys sailor hadnt thought it strange that slaves were flogged to conclusion on a regular basis on the slave ships and had to be forced to touch the slaves in order to make them eat before, he changes his mind after the murder. He is a creature of feelings and emotions, playing on base elements of dominance as he follows through on his captains orders. Similarly, Equiano shows his society back in Africa to be highly organized and quite civilized, includi ng a rich strand of the arts interwoven into day-after-day life, as compared to the brutality and force depicted in Southebys world.