Oroonoko
For years, man has illustrated his willingness to perform injustices to those weaker than he. From the bully in the schoolyard, to the king and his court, it seems that man has a desire to control and dominate others. Oroonoko, by Aphra Behn, illustrates that slavery is unethical, humiliating, demoralizing, and worse than death. Oroonoko is a powerful story about the tribulations of a gallant prince named Oroonoko. Throughout the novel, he is shown to be a brave prince and a friend to many. He is given command over an army and shows his military and strategical prowess by winning his battles and conquering his enemies. In the beginning of the novel, the prince presents Imoinda, the daughter of his foster father, with a gift of slaves that had been captured in his victorious battles. For Oroonoko, slavery was accepted and part of his daily life. However, in the novel, Behn presents slavery as a controversial and central issue towards the downfall of Oroonoko. Is it ethical to enslave another human and own them like a piece of property? What does the novel say about an issue such as slavery? The book, in fact, condemns this type of horrific behavior. She illustrates this issue by sh
In Oroonoko, Behn creates a mindset that favors death over slavery. One situation in the novel where slavery is condemned is when the king threatens to send Imoinda off to another country to be sold as slaves. "He ought to have had so much value and consideration for a maid of her quality as to have nobly put her to death, and not to have sold her like a common slave; the greatest revenge, and the most disgraceful of any, and to which they a thousand times prefer death." She states that slavery is the perfect revenge against someone who has deceived another. The king orders, that "they should be both sold off as slaves to another country, either Christian or heathen, 'twas no matter where. This cruel sentence, worse than death, they implored might be reversed." After constantly repeating the idea of someone preferring death many times over slavery in the novel, Behn shows the reader that slavery is unethical. In conclusion, Behn shows that enslaving a friend is wrong, and that slavery brings about humiliation, torture, and grief. Behn uses the morbid effects of slavery to the extent when she categorizes slavery as being many times worse than death. Using these techniques, Behn gives an immoral connotation to slavery in Oroonok
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Approximate Word count = 836
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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