How does Behn represent slavery in Oroonoko?
Aphra Behn clearly regards it as a misfortune to be a slave, particularly for a great man like Oroonoko. However, she does not appear to be particularly horrified by the existence of the slave trade or the way in which it is conducted, which she describes in rather pragmatic terms. She does not spend a lot of time dwelling on the grim conditions of the slaves' existence. When Oroonoko is reunited with Imoinda, they both bewail their enslavement but seem to regard it chiefly as a fall from their former greatness, rather than as a monstrous condition for any human being. They quickly decide that "even fetters and slavery were soft and easy, and would be supported with joy and pleasure, while they could be so happy to possess each other." Love, therefore, is more important than freedom.
Behn's principal objection to the enslavement of Oroonoko seems to be...
Unlock This Answer Now
Start your 48-hour free trial and get ahead in class. Boost your grades with access to expert answers and top-tier study guides. Thousands of students are already mastering their assignments—don't miss out. Cancel anytime.
Already a member? Log in here.
her belief in kingship rather than a hatred of slavery as an institution. At one point she reports indignantly that "Caesar was taken and whipped like a common slave." Caesar is Oroonoko's new slave-name, a practice Behn does not appear to mind, particularly as Oroonoko is given a name befitting his dignity and royal birth. Her view that Oroonoko is not the sort of person who ought to be enslaved or whipped, however, leads to the uncomfortable conclusion that she believes there are some people for whom this is a natural fate.
In the novel Oroonoko, Behn's representation of slavery is horrible, which it was. It is a tragic story and the horrors of slavery are being well told in the story. Oroonoko is an African prince who falls in love with Imoinda. His grandfather, the king, decides that he wants Imoinda for himself. Oroonoko and Imoinda have married, but his grandfather sends for her to make her his own wife. She goes and Oroonoko is devastated. The grandfather ultimately sells her into slavery. Oroonoko fights a battle and defends his grandfather's crown, but is tricked into going onto a slave ship, with the promise of a celebration. Oroonoko ends up on a plantation and discovers that Imoinda is at the same place. They are reunited and she learns she is going to have his baby. Oroonoko doesn't want his child raised in slavery, so he tries to escape with his family, to tragic results.
In the story, the issue of slavery is a main focal point. Although it is a short novel, it has far reaching results for the reader. Behn shows us the savagery of slavery and the slave owners. She shows how the people sold into slavery had their names changed, to prevent any personal identity for them. She also shows us how the affects of slavery change people. Oroonoko has to make devastating decisions for the sake of his wife and unborn child, which he would not have had to make if he were not a slave.
Does the novel Oroonoko suggest that Behn isn't against slavery?
What is interesting about your question is that it goes against the usually-accepted anti-slavery theme of the book. In this regard, your question is a challenge, but definitely provable using incidents from the work.
One needs to look no further than the larger-than-life hero, Oroonoko, who is known as a "noble savage." It is the latter part of the term that proves your point more than the former part of the term. The fact that Oroonoko is considered "noble" would go against your point. However, the fact that Behn believes "primitivism" to be "good" and the fact that Oroonoko is still portrayed as a "savage" would be good proof of your point.
“He knew almost as much as if he had read much.”
“A poet is a painter in his way, he draws to the life, but in another kind; we draw the nobler part, the soul and the mind; the pictures of the pen shall outlast those of the pencil, and even worlds themselves.”
Through these quotations and, further, through Oroonoko's character, Behn shows that, even though she speaks of him fondly, Behn still considers her protagonist a primitive savage. Even eNotes admits that Behn's idea of "slavery is depicted as endemic in Africa." Endemic means constantly present and even natural for people of a certain class in a certain region. The use of the word "endemic" is telling itself.
There are two ironies that can serve as lesser supports. The first is a fairly obvious one: Oroonoko is a failure in regards to his struggle against slavery that is already engrained in a society. The second is also interesting: Oroonoko (along with his grandfather) actually sell their captives in the lower classes into slavery (even though Oroonoko tries to protect the noble ones). Truthfully, how can Oroonoko be said to be against slavery when he deals in slaves himself!
Finally, there is an interesting point hidden within a few details about Behn, herself. Behn takes great pains to convince us that the story is "true." Just look at the full title: Oroonoko: Or, The Royal Slave, a True History. At one point, we are to assume (as her readers) that Behn has been sent to glean info about a possible slave revolt. The irony here is that it is the white colonists who ask her to spy. Why would white colonists ask Behn to spy on a possible slave revolt if she, herself, was on the side of the slaves? It either makes little sense... or is very very telling that Behn is actually on the side of the Europeans.