An optimistic growth on racial equality?

So just looking for how far we were supposed to read for Thursday, I realized I was supposed to post for today. End of semester head-case. Sigh… I’ll get my life together soon enough! Just not before I do this blog.

Alright so I’m sure I’m not the only one who was glad to read something about the slave trade that wasn’t straight out of a text book. We certainly have plenty of literature about racism and repression of minorities throughout cultures, but not nearly as many about slave trade itself. Plus, this is truly a relief after Paradise Lost. Behn’s sentences are often so beautifully written and sort of poetic themselves.

When discussing Prince Oroonoko’s lady, the narrator says she has seen  “a hundred white men sighing after her, and making a thousand vows at her feet, all in vain, and unsuccessful.” This says a lot to me about the progression of race even during slave trade. Although the white men enslaved the negroes, the white men were still able to see beauty in whatever form it took. They were able to look past a color and see a black woman as a human being, similarly to how the narrator describes the prince. The narrator’s description of Prince Oroonoko is really quite lovely not only because she addresses his physicality as basically flawless, but additionally because she notes his intellect, social abilities, and charm. She says that both his “soul and body [are] admirably adorned.” I know later it might seem like she’s saying he would be the best… if only he weren’t black. But consider that when she’s describing his beauty she mentions his ebony skin and calls is beautiful and additionally mentions that “certainly” people of color can possess an intense beauty. Without having finished the story, I think it introduces a different viewpoint on race than we would expect from the time period.

This weeks reading.

I was really kinda confused when I first read this. I thought that the background to Aphra Behn was really helpful. She paved the way for women to speak their opinion, be authors, etc. She not only produced many types of works, but she was also a spy. How cool is that? Oroonoko is a very interesting piece of work. I'm not usually interested in reading stuff like this, I don't like reading about the slave trade whether it's fiction or non fiction. I think it is important to learn, but I think its just one of the horrible things America has participated in and I don't like it. However, I do think Oroonoko is well written. The way Behn portrays the story, it is like she is actually there. Like this actually happened to her...I guess that is why this story is a travel narrative.

The story opens up with the narrator explaining how well the colonists and the Native Americans get along. Well, maybe she feels that way, but history shows us otherwise. The colonists say they cannot enslave the Native Americans because they vastly outnumber the colonists, they must go somewhere else for slaves. Africa.

Lets skip over a lot. I love the description the narrator gives Oroonoko. She describes his shoulder length hair, beautiful white teeth and how white the whites of his eyes are, his body shape, tall, his beautiful ebony skin. How many slave owners do you know describe their slaves this way??? The beginning of Oroonoko's story was beautiful and then his wife, Imoinda, marries his grandfather. And then I remembered who was telling this story and that he is fated to be a slave, a horrible thing. I know we aren't supposed to finish this story until the end of this week, but not only did I read this story, I looked it up as well. Does anyone know what happens to him? He is sold into slavery by being tricked, whipped with pepper thrown into his wounds, ends up killing his beloved wife because he knows that they will never be free and returned to Africa, and he is also killed, but by being cut into pieces. This is freaking horrible. I hate it. And at the beginning on 2179 it is said that the narrator has no control over this situation and can only write about it? This is why I don't like stories like this. It states, "compassion for the royal slave and outrage at his fate were enlisted in the long battle against the slave trade." Oh, so now he gets compassion? Where was the compassion when he was stolen from his country? Or how about the thousands of others that were stolen from their countries? Tricked into slavery? Beaten? raped? Chopped and torn apart to death? Stuff like this makes me sick.

Oroonoko… in Epic Rap Battles of History!

So it is just me, or is it odd that this switches between first and third person narration? On one page there is a speaker, and then the story is told by some omniscient-god-thing. (At least that is what I imagine every time there is no “person” telling the story.) It reads like a school report; part of it is the speaker’s experience and the rest is what she heard or read in a history book. 

After I fumbled over the spelling, I realized we have another narrator (through both first and third person) who really digs the main character, Prince Oroonoko. I am not sure who would win if you put Prince Oroonoko and Beowulf up against each other in an Epic Rap Battles of History video. (Can I make that video instead of doing the final exam?) I think Oroonoko would get the pretty award, but there was an awkward diss hidden in a compliment when Behn describes him on page 2187 as perfect in every aspect… except for “his color.” I was not expecting tiny racist remarks until winter break, but Behn beat my relatives to the punch. The footnote does say that distinguishing race was common at the time, but just because all the other kids do it doesn’t mean it is ok. Besides that, I think Prince Oroonoko and Beowulf would be pretty evenly matched in their bravery and eloquent speech. Of course, there would definitely have to be a guest appearance by a very steamy Satan from Paradise Lost. (In the end, none of their fates are good, but funky rhymes would make up for it.)

Anyway, this is a short post but that’s what I was thinking about while reading Oroonoko. Do I get the weird award?

 

Oroonoko

The first thing that caught my attention when reading Oroonoko, was the first word "I". This gave me the idea that Behn, was a witness to what actually happened. Or could attest to what happened from others who experienced what she did not. She may not have witnessed everything, but she could get the information from others if she needed to. Behn tells us at first that she isn't going to bore us with the details about Oroonoko but she will eventually tell us about him, and everything that he has endured before his arrival to Surriam. This section was hard solely because of the small print and long paragraphs, however, it was one of the easier reads we've read.

Behn describes the native people as beautiful their skin color as reddish yellow. 'they are very modest and shy and despite living naked, their is never seen among them any inappropriate or indecent behavior. (Although most men would be attracted to someone naked, it was evident that they only admired them by their eyes and not their hands). She even relates them to Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden. I wondered why she did this? Then i thought about sin. How these people must not know about sin.

This becomes clear when the Europeans performed a ceremony for the governor, who they thought was dead. Only because he didn't come to a meeting. Why would they think that death was the only thing that stopped him from attending. Like he just had to be dead huh? Later on when asked what a word for a man who doesn't keep a promise. The response was "a liar". Sadly, the only thing that they understand is what they have been taught by the white man.

The British treat the natives very well. They seem as friends and don't treat them as slaves. However, the British couldn't treat the natives poorly because there were so many natives that the numbers surpassed them. Thus, who does that leave? If an owner wanted a slave, all they had to do was order the slaves like merchandise. (This brings the idea that I've always had. There were so many slaves, and sometimes so many more slaves on a plantation than whites. Why did blacks feel so low when it came to the whites. Again , this goes back to what they were taught from the white man).

I noted three different groups of people. The Europeans, the native Americans, and the African Americans. It is clear that the tension lies between the Europeans and the blacks. The British are forced to be good people and not treat the Europeans as slaves. So British make the money, the Blacks are left to harvest and tend the crops. Oroonoko comes into play as an African general.

The Eyes Are The Window To The Soul

Trying to keep up with how Behn writes is hard work for my eyes because of the small print and large paragraphs. Yet, it is easier to understand compared to Paradise Lost, which had my brain doing circles and criss-cross patterns every time. From what I’ve read so far, it is a very interesting story, but I find that I’m not drawn into it like I was with previous things we’ve read. I don’t know if it’s a combination of her writing style and characters, but I feel it lacks something.

I’m probably the only one who thinks so, but I can rock the lone wolf deal. Yet, there are certain excerpts that I find rather curious. The first was Behn’s description of the Prince on page 2187. He seems to be a well-raised, educated and intelligent young man from the description. His physical appearance is flawless and striking against the rest of his people. He is full of vitality and an inspiration for the men around him.

When it says, “His eyes were the most awful that could be seen, and very piercing, the white of ‘em being like snow, as were his teeth” (2187) I was stopped by the word awful. How can someone’s eyes be awful? It is an unusual description for humans eyes because most writers use adjectives like beautiful, mesmerizing, otherworldly, never awful.

If I could guess, I think she describes his eyes this way because of their experiences, knowledge and ability to see through you. Nothing could be hidden from the Prince because he saw and understood everything going on around him. He spoke English and Spanish so he could communicate with the white people besides his own kind. Since he started young as a fighter, the things he experienced and saw probably shaped him on the inside and sometimes shine through his eyes.

It can intimidating to look at someone who you know has more knowledge and skill than you. You fear their criticism and judgment because you are just trying to get through the day. The people in his town or village may have seen him in this light, besides respecting and looking up to him. The Prince certainly sounds like a fearsome thing to behold. With his strong personality and impeccable character, he is a man’s man. Just his description intimidates me a bit. He seems to be very accomplished at a young age and knows who he is. 

what is power?

            The first thing that sticks out in my mind in Oroonoko, is the comparisons with the Garden of Eden.  The highlight of colonization showed a high point in European power.  A power that was known - now - everywhere in the world.  And the Europeans show a consistent disregard for anything not under their thumb.  The novel in its entirety puts Europeans versus "natives" which includes the local population as well as the imported slaves.  While Oroonoko is a model of nobility and honor, being intelligent and physically strong, he is still overpowered by the fact that his opponents are European, and they outnumber him.  However, Oroonoko is portrayed as beautiful in terms of European physiognomy: "The most famous statuary cou'd not form the figure of a man more admirably turned from head to foot...His nose was rising and Roman, instead of African and flat. His mouth, the finest shap'd that could be seen...The whole proportion and air of his face was so noble, and exactly formed, that, bating his colour, there cou'd be nothing in nature more beautiful, agreeable, and handsome". Oroonoko is exceptional even among his people because he was educated and taught manners by a French tutor. He is described as great through European terms, and even his greatness is due to his European training.  All these things are other examples of Behn showing the Europeans as superior to all other peoples.  So it seems in the test that the Europeans have the power, even Oroonoko has his ability due to European influence.  While the novel appears to be anti-colonialist, the message remains that the European people are far superior, even if they are portrayed as brutal, greedy and liars.  They still hold all the power and authority that is "due" to them over the rest of the world.  Why ask for anti-colonialism without any real backing?  

Oroonoko

Aphra Behn does some really...interesting things with her story. I do like her storytelling, she gives out a lot of really helpful information but I'm rather partial to stories that have more dialogue. Not sure if that's going to pickup in the second half but right now it seems like it's a lot of block text. Which has been working, but it is getting a little boring. 

          I really did enjoy the part about the Native Americans who though the English Governor was dead because he didn't show up when he said he would. There total willingness to call him a liar was also pretty cool. I just really like the idea of a group of people who don't expect everyone to lie all the time. It might be naive but it's also great to see, especially now when our society is built almost entirely on lies. Honestly, what's the point of lies? I'd be really interested in seeing our society try to function without lying. Of course then would come the inevitable collapse of the government and banks and every other piece of infrastructure. 

          I don't really like how she explains how beautiful Oroonoko and Imoinda are and then goes and says it's because they have all these white features. If it weren't for Oroonoko's black skin he would be one of the most beautiful men around. But not only is he black, he's really really black. Like coal. So while she goes on about how attractive he is to all people she keeps throwing in the caveat that 'oh he's not actually that hot because he's black'. It's rude and really racist. Although I feel that's to be expected in this time frame. Imoinda is even so beautiful that 40+ white men have been caught staring at her. As if the fact that white men even find her attractive makes her stand out so much. Half of Aphra Behn's love of Oroonoko comes from the fact that she loves how educated and cultured he is. He speaks English and French and all that jazz but those are all markers of European civilization. Who cares? He's a pretty awesome guy for other reasons. He's a renowned soldier and leader, unbelievably loyal, and a good friend. And any guy who doesn't kill the man who literally steals his wife the day(ish) before the wedding (grandfather or no) gets points in my book. I know he's going to do some stuff that I can't really support in the next half of the story but for now Oroonoko seems like a pretty cool guy. 

Devils, Satan, Adam and Eve, and the Human Condition

In the past few books that we have read they have discussed devils, Satan, and the human condition. In Oroonoko, the author, Aphra Behn discusses the innocence of Adam and Eve tying this novella to some of the other pieces of literature that we have read this year. In Paradise Lost, Satan discusses his point of view. Satan plans to corrupt God's newest creation. In Oroonoko, the narrator discusses Adam and Eve and compares the innocence to that of the narrator prior to when they began to sin. I think that the religious references between the literature that we have read kind of builds off of one another. I know that this is a really short post but my next post will be longer.