Essays on Oroonoko

Historical context plays a great role in our understanding of a piece of literature, allowing us to achieve a more insightful reading of a text. Within Aphra Behn’s Oroonoko historical context is greatly important for allowing us to consider Behn’s intention behind her writing: Whether Oroonoko creates a radical depiction of slavery or whether it...

“If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong,” said Abraham Lincoln (“Abraham Lincoln: Letter to Albert G. Hodges”, 1864). By way of explanation, there is nothing as bad as being involved in slavery activities and this is true in all circumstances. Within the term “Slavery”, this brings about the sense of being tortured in which...

In my final essay, I plan to examine Behn’s novel Oroonoko; or, The Royal Slave and pose the question “What message was Behn trying to convey in writing Oroonoko’s story?” Readers of Behn’s prose narrative Oroonoko may come to the conclusion that it was only written as a way of showcasing racial inequality and the...