Olaudah Equiano

Gustavo Quintero
English 48A
October 25, 2007
Journal #18 Equiano

Quote:
"I no longer looked upon them as spirits, but as men superior to us; and therefore I had stronger desire to resemble them, to imbibe their spirit, and imitate their manners"(Equiano 689).

Summary:
The above quote shows Equiano's feelings towards the English that he has come to know. He says how he wishes to be like them and to have the same customs as the English.

Response:
This is a very intersting quote for many reasons. During Equiano's lifetime he passed through many different owners. This prevented Equiano from developing his own identity. For a slave, at the time of the quote, Equiano wishes to take on the customs that the English have. Yet at the same time he also says how proud he is to be African. I hate to pick apart a man who cannot defend himslef buy he seems to be a bit of a hypocrite. I do not understand how he can speak out against slavery yet he wishes to adopt the customs of the very people that enslave him and his people. I guess one reason that Equiano feels this way is because he was very lucky with his owners. He was always sold to educated and rich men who treated him extremely well for a slave in his time. While Equiano saw the injustices that slavery creates he also saw the benefits in assimilating into the English community. Later Equiano even gets baptized something im sure most slaves were not able to do at those times. I also find it counterproducitve when he says that sees the English men as "superior to us". Equiano may have thought this before he really gave any thought into becoming the voice of the African American slaves.

Although I may sound like I am compltely ripping Equiano I actually enjoyed reading his writings. I found his life story to be truly fascinating. His life was full of travel and adventure. While I say this Equiano was in a very unique situation.He was always surrounded by people that let him develop intellectually and as a businessman. Something I am sure not many slaves got to experince. With this said I do not want to end this journal on a neghative note rather I want to say I really enjoyed reading about Equiano's life.