The Classic Slave Narratives

I just finished reading a book called ‘The Classic Slave Narratives’ which includes four narratives written by former slaves – ‘The Life Olaudah Equiano’, ‘The History of Mary Prince’, ‘Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass’ and ‘Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl’. I doubt there’s any other book that took hold of and got so deep into my heart as this one. These stories are full of sorrow and pain. The vicious cruelty of slavery, both physical and moral, goes beyond the realm of the most perverted imagination. This is why these accounts might at times seem incredible, but the fact that they are entirely true only makes them even more poignant and horrifying.

Yet at the same time these narratives give hope, for even those who had been entirely stripped of every natural unalienable right a human being is entitled to managed to rise above their wretched situation and wicked circumstances and by writing their stories serve a great cause of abolishing slavery. Very powerful forces had contrived to deprive the oppressed of their voices (and, in fact, of so much more), but despite every obstacle that was thrown in their way these individuals succeeded in making their voices heard, not for their own interest but for that of millions of others who had no such opportunity. So I think the least one can do to pay respect to their heroic effort is familiarize oneself with these stories for the sake of knowing our past, better understanding our present and ensuring a brighter future. In fact, these stories cast so much light on what we see happening nowadays and allow to trace back the roots of the many forms of oppression that millions of people still experience today.

This book is not a light read but I think it’s one of the greatest and most important books I have ever read. I urge you to find these (and many other) narratives and enlighten yourself on the subject of that appalling era, for the knowledge of what so many human beings had to go through and a better understanding of the past is a necessary ingredient for the cure of so many problems that plague our present-day world.

Thank you for letting me borrow this book DJ, I very much appreciate it!