What can Frederick Douglass Bring to Equiano's Narrative?

Particularly in male slave narratives (female ones tend to dwell on the sexualized aspects of slavery both because of their prurient interest and horror-reactions and because that aspect didn't usually apply to male slaves) there are a couple of qualities in the storyteller himself that "determine" his successful negotiation of the path from slavery to freedom. One tends to be education. The successful road to freedom is nearly always paved with an ability to read and write that is difficultly won.

Another seems to be the ability to reason in the true 18th century sense of the term--these men are capable of rational thinking that exactly mirrors the thought processes of their captives. Equiano has real knowledge of his own about life, culture, and even knowledge of a "progressive" profession, but his actions are only measured by the actions and knowledge valuable to his captors.

Another seems to be the ability to turn one's curiosity about new things into capital: to be able to make oneself invaluable to one's master and try to gain both better and fairer treatment as a result. Does this "mirror" the (predominantly white and male) American Dream, or is it actually essential to the ability to survive slavery? How do you see it?

Captain John Smith Sells America

Norton Anthology tells us that the first settlement in Virginia (Roanoke) was a disaster, and that consequently, the second trip was financed on a more "corporate" model--one where the funding generally came from merchants (not the aristocracy). This is important to what happens later. Smith's essay becomes a "sales pitch" for coming to America and settling down there. The idea, of course, is to make it profitable for the investors. If we think about it this way, we can see why he makes less of the danger and talks much more about the beauty and richness of soil, plant and animal life, and the possibilities for getting rich there. England itself was in need of the infusion of resources that were shipped back, and there were plenty of poor people who were willing to take a chance on a better life. This is the beginning of the "American Dream," and it still exists today--even outside of the political haymaking on it.

Custom and Trickster

One of the most interesting things about the native stories is how they allow people to both remember and enjoy their customs. It is an occasion for celebration, for otherwise, why would you tell a story to begin with? We tell family stories at holidays as ways to remember other times, old friends, family members who have passed on.

Coyote tales (like ours of the Coyote, Skunk, and Prairie Dog and the Chinook tale about fishing ) tell people the right way to smoke fish, the right way to behave toward others, etc., but at the same time, the admonishments come with humor. Why would Coyote, or anyone else for that matte, ask his own waste products for advice? While this may seem foolish, it is supposed to, and I don't see how you could hear or read the story without at least smiling. Most native groups use humor to a much greater extent than Europeans as methods of instruction. Perhaps this stems from our more serious religious outlook. If we believe, as the Puritans did, that some of us are "elected" to salvation, then our outlook on life might be excessively gloomy.

Much of the tales are also metaphoric--the bear might not actually cut out a portion of his stomach; however, he might have reached down into his winter stores that were not exactly plentiful, and "given til it hurt" in terms of making it through the winter.

There are myriad ways to make a point. if we look at some of the similarities and differences between native tales and out own, then we see another way of looking at the world.