Olaudah Equiano

El autor nació en 1745 en una aldea ibo de la actual Nigeria. Fue secuestrado a los once años y, tras pasar por sucesivos amos africanos, fue vendido a unos traficantes blancos que le embarcaron en un buque esclavista hasta la isla de Barbados; de ahi paso a Virginia, donde fue comprado por un teniente de la armada britanica con quien navego varios años. Despues vendran un capitan y un empresario cuaquero, a quien conprara su libertad.

Materias: Biografías Editorial: Universidad de León

The autobiography of a man kidnapped into slavery who fought for his freedom and became a key figure in the abolitionist movement. A powerful and vivid historical account.

In an adventurous and extraordinary life, Equiano criss-crossed the Atlantic world, from West Africa to the Caribbean to the USA to Britain, either as a slave or fighting with the Royal Navy. His account of his life is not only one of the great documents of the abolition movement, but also a startling, moving story of danger and betrayal.

Olaudah Equiano, known for most of his life as Gustavus Vassa, was a writer and abolitionist from, according to his memoir, the Eboe region of the Kingdom of Benin."The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano" is Olaudah Equianos autobiography. The book, which was published in 1789, describes Equianos life in slavery, beginning with his kidnapping by slave traders at age eleven. Equiano travelled extensively with his master, the captain of a British trading vessel, and was allowed to own minor trade exchanges. In 1766, he used his savings to purchase his freedom. He obtained a job working for a scientist in England, while also travelling as an abolitionist and public speaker. His autobiography is noted for its combination of literary forms--epistolary form, travel narrative, slave narrative, and religious meditation.

Sometimes true life spins more shocking stories than the minds of writers. That is the case with The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano.The understated title masks an autobiography where truth trumps fiction, featuring kidnapping, death, slavery, jail, transportation, rape, Christian faith and much more.It is also one of the most important books of its time, the late 18th century. For its publication told the truth about the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and sowed the seeds for the abolition movement that eventually stopped it.The scandal of slavery that Equiano helped get into the publics consciousness has been featured in a host of films, including 12 Years a Slave, directed by Steve McQueen and based on a novel by Solomon Northup.

Cut iron with iron,What makes iron valuable,Big kuku tree and big silk-cotton tree,Fari and Kaunju -Told and retold since the fourteenth century, this West African epic chronicles the story of the mighty warrior who saves his people and founds an empire. One of 46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946. Each book gives readers a taste of the Classics huge range and diversity, with works from around the world and across the centuries - including fables, decadence, heartbreak, tall tales, satire, ghosts, battles and elephants.

A seminal work that provides an important window into the experience of one individual in the context of the transatlantic slave trade. Situating his life within this broader narrative, Equiano carefully chronicles his journey from enslavement to emancipation and beyond. His account serves as a powerful reminder of the brutality and dehumanization inherent in individuals lives under the transatlantic slave trade.

WITH A FOREWORD BY DAVID OLUSOGAThis is the extraordinary story of Olaudah Equiano: Child slave. Soldier. Free man. Traveller. Abolitionist. Celebrity. Kidnapped as a child into slavery, Equiano spent the rest of his life fighting for his freedom. After years of slavery, working on ships that carried him across empire and into battle during the Seven Years War, he eventually managed to purchase his own freedom, and went on to become a leading figure in the early abolition movement.Published to coincide with the first attempt to abolish the slave trade in 1789, Equianos remarkable autobiography became a sensation and turned its author into the most famous Black person in Georgian Britain. As vivid and powerful today as it was in 1789, Equianos story is the most significant autobiographical account of slavery to emerge from Britains centuries as a slave trading power. In this JM Classics edition, leading historian David Olusogas introduction sets Equianos book in its historical context, helping us to understand the man himself.

Completely revised and edited with an introduction and notes by Vincent CarrettaAn exciting and often terrifying adventure story, as well as an important precursor to such famous nineteenth-century slave narratives as Frederick Douglasss autobiographies, Olaudah Equianos The Interesting Narrative recounts his kidnapping in Africa at the age of ten, his service as the slave of an officer in the British Navy, his ten years of labor on slave ships until he was able to purchase his freedom in 1766, and his life afterward as a leading and respected figure in the antislavery movement in England. A spirited autobiography, a tale of spiritual quest and fulfillment, and a sophisticated treatise on religion, politics, and economics, The Interesting Narrative is a work of enduring literary and historical value.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Edited and with Notes by Shelly EversleyIntroduction by Robert Reid-PharrIn this truly astonishing eighteenth-century memoir, Olaudah Equiano recounts his remarkable life story, which begins when he is kidnapped in Africa as a boy and sold into slavery and culminates when he has achieved renown as a British antislavery advocate. The narrative is a strikingly beautiful monument to the startling combination of skill, cunning, and plain good luck that allowed him to win his freedom, write his story, and gain international prominence, writes Robert Reid-Pharr in his Introduction. He alerts us to the very concerns that trouble modern intellectuals, black, white, and otherwise, on both sides of the Atlantic.The text of this Modern Library Paperback Classic is set from the definitive ninth edition of 1794, reflecting the authors final changes to his masterwork.

In The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, former slave Olaudah Equiano tells the story of his life, from the time he and his sister were kidnapped and enslaved, through his emancipation, and subsequent freedom. Equianos moving account delves into his experience as a sailor and explores the importance of his religious education.Published in 1789, Equianos narrative was the first widely-read and popularized account of slavery, and was notable for exploring the differences between enslavement throughout the Americas. It has also provided a foundation for future slave narratives.HarperTorch brings great works of non-fiction and the dramatic arts to life in digital format, upholding the highest standards in ebook production and celebrating reading in all its forms. Look for more titles in the HarperTorch collection to build your digital library.

HarperCollins is proud to present our range of timeless literary classics.But is not the slave trade entirely a war with the heart of man? In 1789, Olaudah Equiano published his remarkable autobiography of his journey from enslavement to freedom. Kidnapped from his home in West Africa and sold into slavery as a child, Equiano renamed Gustavus Vassa travelled the world as an enslaved man, before he eventually purchased his freedom and became a leading figure in the British abolition campaign. One of the earliest known books published by a Black African author, Equianos vivid and harrowing life story shed light on the atrocities of the transatlantic slave trade. The Interesting Narrative has been widely celebrated for its impact on the abolitionist movement and remains today a powerful record of the horrors of slavery.

The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano is a poignant and groundbreaking account of slavery, freedom, and self-determination. Written by Olaudah Equiano, the narrative chronicles his journey from captivity in Africa to his experiences as a slave and eventual emancipation, providing a firsthand perspective on the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade. Equianos vivid storytelling offers an unflinching look at the inhumanity of slavery while also highlighting his resilience and faith in the pursuit of freedom.Since its publication in 1789, The Interesting Narrative has been celebrated as a seminal work in the abolitionist movement. Equianos ability to intertwine personal experiences with broader social commentary has made the book an essential text in understanding the historical context of slavery and the fight for human rights. His reflections on identity, spirituality, and the universal quest for dignity resonate deeply with readers, transcending the specific historical moment in which it was written.The enduring significance of Equianos narrative lies in its capacity to illuminate the intersections of individual struggle and systemic injustice. By recounting his life with both unflinching honesty and profound humanity, Equiano invites readers to confront the moral complexities of his era and consider their implications for contemporary discussions on freedom, equality, and justice. His work remains a powerful testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the enduring fight for universal human rights.

First published in 1789, The Life of Olaudah Equiano, Gustavus Vassa the African blends spiritual autobiography, travel narrative, and abolitionist argument. Equiano traces his Eboe childhood, abduction and the Middle Passage, enslavement in the Americas, naval service, mercantile work, and the purchase of his liberty. In lucid, poised prose, he fuses ethnographic observation with Enlightenment reason and evangelical reflection to indict Atlantic slavery. Born c. 1745 and known in Britain as Gustavus Vassa, Equiano educated himself at sea and in Atlantic ports, embracing Anglican evangelicalism and collaborating with abolitionists like Granville Sharp and Thomas Clarkson. After buying his freedom in 1766, he ranged from the Caribbean to the Arctic as a sailor and merchant. His encounters with imperial warfare and commerce sharpened his critique; later debates over his birthplace highlight, rather than diminish, his self-fashioned authority. This landmark of Black Atlantic literature remains essential for students of history, religion, and autobiography, and for any reader seeking a clear-eyed primary witness. Read it for its moral clarity, narrative craft, and analytic intelligence, and for the still-urgent case it makes against racialized exploitation. Equianos narrative reshapes how we think about freedom, citizenship, and the making of a modern global conscience.Quickie Classics summarizes timeless works with precision, preserving the authors voice and keeping the prose clear, fast, and readabledistilled, never diluted. Enriched Edition extras: Introduction · Synopsis · Historical Context · Author Biography · Brief Analysis · 4 Reflection Q&As · Editorial Footnotes.

Olaudah Equiano was one of the most prominent people of African heritage involved in the British debate for the abolition of the slave trade. He wrote an autobiography that depicted the horrors of slavery and helped influence British lawmakers to abolish the slave trade through the Slave Trade Act of 1807. This is his story. "I hope the reader will not think I have trespassed on his patience in introducing myself to him with some account of the manners and customs of my country. They had been implanted in me with great care, and made an impression on my mind, which time could not erase, and which all the adversity and variety of fortune I have since experienced served only to rivet and record; for, whether the love of ones country be real or imaginary, or a lesson of reason, or an instinct of nature, I still look back with pleasure on the first scenes of my life, though that pleasure has been for the most part mingled with sorrow." -Olaudah Equiano

One of the earliest known published works written by an African author, The Interesting Narrative was a groundbreaking memoir that helped pave the way for the abolition of slavery. In it, Equiano describes his early life in Africa, his abduction and gruelling journey across the world on a slave ship and the years he spent in servitude, fighting in others wars and helping to enrich those who would wish him in fetters for the rest of his life.Published in London once Equiano had secured his freedom, the runaway success of the book led to his financial independence, and he toured England, Scotland and Ireland lecturing on the horrors he lived through, and he dedicated his life to advocating for the abolition of slavery. Forgotten until the 1960s, The Interesting Narrative has again shot to fame, and is now considered the most detailed account of a slaves life, exposing the trials of the long road to freedom.