E. The Slave Narrative

1. Favorite Passage:

An Excerpt from The Life of Gustavus Vassa-

I now saw myself deprived of all chance of returning to my native country, or even the least glimpse of hope of gaining the shore, which I now considered as friendly; and I even wished for my former slavery in preference to my present situation, which was filled with horrors of every kind, still heightened by my ignorance of what I was to undergo. I was not long suffered to indulge my grief; I was soon put down under the decks, and there I received such a salutation in my nostrils as I had never experienced in my life: so that, with the loathsomeness of the stench, and crying together, I became so sick and low that I was not able to eat, nor had I the least desire to taste any thing. I now wished for the last friend, death, to relieve me; but soon, to my grief, two of the white men offered me eatables; and, on my refusing to eat, one of them held me fast by the hands, and laid me across.

2. The Life of Gustavus Vassa Essential Question:

How does freedom affect the life of an individual?

In Olaudah Equiano's The Life of Gustavus Vassa, Equianos' life has been affected a great deal because of the lack of freedom he has been given. Not only has he become a slave, but the chance of a good life, any other white male has been given since birth, was not given to Equiano, but rather, hardship and deprivation. Without freedom, Equiano is forced to live a life of slavery, enduring a life of misery and despair. Moreover, it is because Equiano did not have this beloved freedom did he find his internal strength and he was successfully able to release himself from the hands of slavery. Therefore, lack of freedom may usually affect mankind in a terrible manner, but, if man were to turn this idea around, they can make their weakness, become a strength.