Paula Castro
Professor Rumore
ENG 302
18 May 2020
Capitalism and Transatlantic Enslavement
The course of English 302 covers different themes that can be explored through different texts. A powerful theme that is present throughout the course is how the emergence of capitalism led to transatlantic enslavement. As plantations grew, people in Europe and in the United States bought more slaves to work in the plantations and produce capital. Therefore, the growth of plantations and other industries that require human labor relied on transatlantic enslavement that brought their work force. The slaves had different experiences once they arrived to their destinations. In the poem “On Being Brought from Africa to America” by Phillis Wheatley, she expresses how the relocation from Africa to America has saved her; in the book The Interesting Narrative by Olaudah Equiano, he recounts his experience as a slave and his attempts to gain his freedom; in the book Oroonoko by Aphran Behn, the narrator describes Oroonoko’s experience as a slave and his failed attempts on gaining his freedom. Also, it is vital to address that Oroonoko is a fictional character whereas Equiano and Wheatley describe their real experiences. They all expose the dehumanization that transatlantic enslavement brought to Africans, and the capital it brought to westerns.
In the poem “On Being Brought from Africa to America” by Phillis Wheatley, she expresses that she sees her enslavement experience as one that will bring her salvation. Wheatley was the servant of a family that educated her and eventually emancipated her. Therefore, her experience was not the experience of a regular slave. However, the fact that she was bought as an object dehumanizes her. Wheatley was introduced to religion and was encouraged to believe that her enslavement experience became her salvation. She expresses her feelings of gratitude for being saved when she says “’twas mercy brought me from my Pagan land” (Wheatley, 1). Although, people in Africa have their own customs and believes, she feels that she has come near the real savior by being brought to America. The introduction to religion was a strategy to make slaves believe that they have been saved in order to make them submissive. Religion not only brings the idea of salvation, but also the fear of damnation; therefore, slaves would try to avoid damnation by following the rules of religion. Also, on lines 7-8 she states “remember, Christians, Negroes, black as Cain, May be refin’d, and join th’ angelic train” (Wheatley), meaning that even though race has made them different everyone can be saved and can “join th’ angeliz train”. Even though, Wheatley felt that her enslavement experience brought her salvation, the fact that she was sold as an object dehumanizes her and fact that the Wheatley family acquired her as their property adds capital to them. Therefore, transatlantic enslavement brought dehumanization to the African and capital to the American.
In the book The Interresting Narrative by Olaudah Equiano, he narrates his life as a slave and his journey to freedom. During his enslavement he worked as a merchant producing money for the owner, while he was just property. Equiano viewed freedom as equality and being self-possessed. He acknowledged that transatlantic enslavement dehumanized Africans since he believed that everyone was born naturally free, but the enslavement robbed Africans of their freedom. Ironically, Equiano used what he had learned during the time he had been institutionalized to write this abolitionist text that intended to enlist white people to view slavery from an abolitionist point of view. In his narrative he not only addressed the lack of freedom, but also the fake versions of freedom that existed. On page 122, he talks about what he has heard happening in Philadelphia, where even when people had become free, they continued to be treated as slaves; even in courts their proof of freedom was not admitted. Then, he continued to say “in this situation, is it surprising that slaves, when mildly treated, should prefer even the misery of slavery to such a mockery of freedom?” (Equiano, 122), suggesting that there was no such thing as real freedom for slaves. Once again, his experience as a slave has proved that he has been dehumanized since all humans are born free, but he had to buy his freedom giving capital to his owner.
In the book Oroonoko by Aphran Behn, she offers an insight into the life of a royal slave that she has created, since Oroonoko is a fictional character. The narrator, a white Englishwoman, narrates the life of Oroonoko not only showing her position of power, but also making capital out of it. Also, during the narration of the fictional character’s life he is described as being beautiful because he did not have African features, suggesting that African features were less appealing. When they had Oroonoko in the ship, he refused to eat and decided to let himself die and his fellow friends that were also captured followed his example; at this moment, the narrator tells the reader “this did not a little vex the captain, and the more so because he found almost all of them of the same humour; so that the loss of so many brave slaves, so tall and goodly to behold, would have been very considerable” (Behn, 38) suggesting that the Captain’s thought of losing all of them annoyed him because he would lose goods that would make him a lot of money. Therefore, not only Africans were dehumanized because they were seen as goods and not people, but also they were seen as goods that would make westerns money.
Africans were dehumanized while westerns were benefiting financially from such dehumanization. Different slaves had different experiences; Wheatley in her poem “On Being Brought from Africa to America” narrates a journey of salvation, while Equiano in The Interesting Narrative uses how he has been institutionalized to try to convince whites of his abolitionist views. On the other hand, Behn uses her power as a white Englishwoman to create a fictional character in her book Oroonoko and narrate his life. Although, some slaves viewed their enslavement as a positive experience, they were all dehumanized since they were acquired as property and their owners benefited financially as slaves represented capital. Therefore, capitalism led to the transatlantic enslavement because transatlantic enslavement provided westerners with human labor that represented capital; and at the same time, such enslavement dehumanized Africans, since they were viewed as less than human and just as a labor force that provided capital.
