Olaudah Equiano’s journey, although seemingly terrible, may have changed his life for the better. He was sold as a slave at a young age, and remained a slave for many years, until he was able to purchase his freedom. His experiences shape who him into the man he is, and give him credibility when he speaking about slavery. Equiano was taken from his home as a child and sold into slavery by an opposing tribe. Throughout his slavery, his reoccurring wish was that one day he would be able to return home. The slavers even taunted him by saying that they were taking him back home.
Some of the people of the ship used to tell me they were going to carry me back to my own country, and this made me very happy. I was quite rejoiced at the idea of …show more content…
(Equiano 483)
If he stayed at home he would be placed into leadership, how then could being sold as a slave have bettered his life? During his time with his final master, he befriended a young sailor who taught him how to speak and write in English. Without these skills he would never have been able to write his life story or speak out against slavery. Had he stayed, his life would have entailed fighting enemy tribes and trying to stay alive. Whereas his life in England was much different. He became a hairdresser and barber cutting men’s hair instead of their bodies. He later joined a commission to return poor Africans back to Africa, and openly spoke out against slavery. Olaudah Equiano had a difficult life, he was stolen from his home and sold into slavery, but he made a respectable life for himself in light of his dark past. Not all unpleasant circumstances lead to unpleasant outcomes. He was a slave for a portion of his life, but later he tried to help people leave their slavery. His experiences gave him opportunities to help people that he would have missed had he stayed in
Some of the people of the ship used to tell me they were going to carry me back to my own country, and this made me very happy. I was quite rejoiced at the idea of …show more content…
(Equiano 483)
If he stayed at home he would be placed into leadership, how then could being sold as a slave have bettered his life? During his time with his final master, he befriended a young sailor who taught him how to speak and write in English. Without these skills he would never have been able to write his life story or speak out against slavery. Had he stayed, his life would have entailed fighting enemy tribes and trying to stay alive. Whereas his life in England was much different. He became a hairdresser and barber cutting men’s hair instead of their bodies. He later joined a commission to return poor Africans back to Africa, and openly spoke out against slavery. Olaudah Equiano had a difficult life, he was stolen from his home and sold into slavery, but he made a respectable life for himself in light of his dark past. Not all unpleasant circumstances lead to unpleasant outcomes. He was a slave for a portion of his life, but later he tried to help people leave their slavery. His experiences gave him opportunities to help people that he would have missed had he stayed in