Olaudah Equiano

Source
The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavas Vassa, the African. Written by Himself (New York, 1791). (Copy in the John Carter Brown Library at Brown University)

Comments
Portrait and title page, New York edition of Equiano's Narrative. Equiano, an Igbo from present-day eastern Nigeria, was kidnapped from his natal village. In 1757, at about the age of 11 or 12, he was transported from the Bight of Biafra to Barbados, where he briefly stayed--unsold-- and then was taken to Virginia where he remained about a month. His new master, a British Naval officer, took him to London and gave him the name Gustavas Vassa. When in his mid-forties, he wrote his "narrative" to arouse in Britain's Parliament "a sense of compassion for the miseries which the slave-trade has entailed on my unfortunate countrymen." For the definitive modern edition of Equiano's Narrative, see Vincent Carretta, ed., The Interesting Narrative and Other Writings, Olaudah Equiano (Penguin Books, 1995, rev. ed, 20

Why is he important?

Why is the historical narrative of Olaudah Equiano different from other narratives of enslaved Africans at the time?

How do you think the narrative of Olaudah Equiano affected the historical account of enslaved Africans?

What does the picture show?

Why is this different then typical photos of black people at that time?

What does this image say to its viewers?