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Post by Mr. Thomas on Oct 28, 2013 10:20:27 GMT -5
Post responses here.
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Post by frankclarke on Oct 28, 2013 15:58:04 GMT -5
Frank Clarke Mr. Thomas English 11 28 October 2013
E. This portion of Equiano’s story has me a bit perplexed. I feel as though reading through this, he writes with almost no emotion. It seems as if he writes as if he wasn’t there, but still manages to place himself within the story. “We were conducted immediately to the merchant’s yard, where we were all pent up together like so many sheep in a fold without regard to sex or age” (Page 61) Other writers would normally write with some sort of anguish or resentment of the “whites”, but not Olaudah.
D. “In a little time after, amongst the poor chained men I found some of my own nation, which in a small degree gave ease to my mind.” This story reminds me of the book we recently read in religion, Victor Frankl’s “A Man’s Search For Meaning.” In it, he discusses how even through the terrible actions of the Nazi’s he managed to find a greater meaning in it all. This quote on page 59 resembles a small part of what Frankl was trying to portray. Olaudah was looking for reasons to want to live and to want to keep fighting for his survival, and seeing men from his own country helped him in his uphill battle.
A. Like I discussed in “D”, we can somewhat compare this story of the slave ship to the holocaust, and to Victor Frankl. In the Slave Ship, Olaudah discusses how he can survive and the anguish he felt throughout the whole ordeal. How he begged the whites for the last scraps of the fish, when they decided instead to throw it over board. While in Nazi Germany, the Jews were given a minuscule amount of bread each day, when there was an ample amount in the camps.
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Post by johnmarano on Oct 28, 2013 17:28:02 GMT -5
John Marano
Mr. Thomas
English 11
28 October 2013
C. Just like I mentioned in class, I question the tone of the narrator. Like what is he feeling?? I am really puzzled by his reaction towards the whole situation. He is constantly being traded from family to family like a toy and he continues to show little emotion in all of this tragedy. Why is he not panicking?? I know I would be bugging out. He even begins to describe what he is seeing as if it’s no problem. I guess its cool that he can keep calm but how does he do this? I also question how he says, “my situation was not so desperate” (59). Are you kidding me? How is being captive and loosing a free life no literally kill you?
D. I am kind of confused with the whole situation. From the reading, a specific quote that stood out to me was on page 58. The narrator says, “I now saw myself deprived of all chance of returning to my native country or even the last glimpse of hope…” This really showed how one really cant take the suffering anymore. Throughout the year, we have read many stories of slavery and in this case I want to relate this reading to the “Narrative Captivity.” Just like in that story, the narrator is completely losing sight of finding true meaning in his suffering. This quote really foreshadows the remainder of the story because it gives a background of the narrator giving up. This makes me question his next motives and decisions.
I. Although he was absent from today’s discussion, Frank Clarke has a really intriguing comparison in his discussion board answers. I would like to comment how he talks about Viktor Frankl. I had a similar reaction to this because although not too much emotion was present, he is still continuing to keep calm, which means he is finding a way to get through the horror. Great response Frank!
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Post by georgebaroudos on Oct 28, 2013 18:39:00 GMT -5
George Baroudos Mr. Thomas English 11 25 October 2013
A – When put into an awkward situation our first move is to seek comfort. Often times it is hard to come by. One thing we can never change is our hometown. My hometown is Rockaway, when someone I know from Rockaway is near me I feel more comfortable. I believe truly that we will have each other’s back. It’s hard to find comfort, but we can all find it in our roots. We just have to search hard enough.
D – “Everyone of their countenances expressing dejection and sorrow, I no longer doubted of my fate” (58) At this point in time Olaudah has given up. In a time of despair it is too easy to just give up. As humans we cannot give up in a time of despair, we have to keep fighting. As hard as it is we cannot lose hope. A person with hope has a better chance to live then a person who does not. The easy way out is to give up, a person who has been pushed to his or her limits gives up. But some people who are pushed can get right back up and that’s when we make a difference.
I – The consistency of the despair and sorrow of the literature we have analyzed breaks my heart. The grief that over powers this whole chapter in literature often leaves the outcome tainted. If we anticipate despair then we shouldn’t expect favorable results. This whole chapter tends to end in grief because they expect grief and sorrow. The inability of people to keep their heads high is tragic in their character. It is never easy, but if we want to break out of grief for the slightest bit, we must maintain a positive attitude. As it seems there are many instances in this chapter when they fail to keep their head up.
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Post by matthewchan on Oct 28, 2013 19:37:41 GMT -5
Matthew Chan Mr. Thomas English 11 28 October 2013
A. The Slave Ship can relate to the Colombian Exchange. Although the Colombian Exchange did not go to Barbados, slaves were cramped together on a ship not knowing where they’re going next. These slaves lived on a ship that was filled with diseases and poor conditions. Slaves were cramped together and when a person was sick, it was for the germs and diseases to spread. D. I enjoyed the quote on p.58, “I was now persuaded that I had gotten into a world of bad spirits and that they were going to kill me?” I was confused at first about what he meant when he said “they were going to kill me”? Was he referring to the bad spirits or the people working on board the ship? However, I enjoyed the quote overall because was the feeling most slaves felt when they were going to be transported on a ship with hundreds of other slaves. This is the point where your life is about to change because you do not know what will happen next. Were you going to die or were you going to be gone forever? E. E. I felt sorry for the character in this story because he refers to many things during his journey that he doesn’t understand or can’t be able to do. He hears these white people talking to each other but, he doesn’t understand their language or what they are talking about. He is also on a ship filled with hundreds of other slaves and clueless about where they were going to. Many people were concerned for themselves and many thought that they would never see daylight again. If I was a slave, I would be terrified because of my surroundings and not knowing where I will end up next.
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Post by danokeefe15 on Oct 28, 2013 19:42:33 GMT -5
Danny O’Keefe
Mr. Thomas
English 11
10/28/13
C. While I was reading I noticed that this is the first time that he has seen these people with different skin or the white people, but who were the people that kidnapped and brought him there? Were they his own people or people working for them? And why did those people help him after he fainted and then leave right after, because didn’t he say that he recognized these guys. Were they the guys that brought him there?
D. “I asked them if we were not to be eaten by those white men with horrible looks, red faces, and loose hair. They told me I was not, and one of the crew brought me a small portion of spirituous liquor in a wineglass, but being afraid of him I would not take it out of his hand.” This quote stood out to me because it showed me how terrified and intimidated they were of these people and that they had no idea who they were and what they were going to do with them.
E. what I liked about this reading was that it gave good detail and insight on what the slave ships were like and how the people felt and were treated. It explained what their first thoughts were when they first entered the ship and overall what they experienced on the ship and what it was like.
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Post by eointunney on Oct 28, 2013 19:58:41 GMT -5
Eoin Tunney Mr. Thomas English 11 28 October 2013
E. I really enjoyed this story written by Olaudah Equiano. His writings are extremely unlike all of the other stories we read this year. The think I like most about Olaudah is that he is very optimistic. Throughout this story he says that it might not be that bad working in the America’s. Many people that write about this topic would probably write how they are even dreading thinking about working as a slave in Barbados. The other thing that I liked about this author is that this story has nothing to do with God. I feel that when an author incorporates God into their story, it tends to be very boring.
A. While I was reading these 4 pages, there was one thing that made me extremely confused. When Olaudah Equiano was being put on the boat in Africa, the crew gave him a small portion of liquor. I found this very strange because the crew actually showed sympathy towards Olaudah. I always thought these people were very cruel. This scene relates to the articles we read before about how the Nazi general was only doing his job.
I. After reading the story, I saw that Olaudah Equiano immediately felt more comfortable in his stuff situations when there was someone with him that was from his home country. I found this extremely agreeable, especially after I read George Baroudos’ comment on part A. I felt that I could really relate to what George was saying.
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Post by Sgarlato on Oct 28, 2013 20:28:34 GMT -5
Stephen Sgarlato Mr. Thomas English 11 10/28/13
A. The slaves boats can relate to today’s world in an army perspective. When traveling to different countries army soldiers are put in bunks on boats and they live very poor lives on the boats because of the amounts they come in. The slaves were put on boats not knowing where they where they were going next. The soldiers do know where they are going but not every second of the day so it does have some relation. C. Basically my only question about this passage was the style of writing. Was he mad, angry, happy, sad. What where his feelings during this. Obviously since it’s about slavery it isn’t going to be a happy feeling but it didn’t seem like a mood of despair or sorrow. D. In this part of the story I really enjoyed when they referred to bad spirits being on the boat because this makes the story interesting, not that it wasn’t already but it adds something extra. With this new element it adds suspense and nervousness to the characters of the story. It makes you want to read and continue.
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Post by bourdonm15 on Oct 28, 2013 20:35:21 GMT -5
Matthew Bourdon Mr. Thomas English 11 10/28/13 B. The text that really stood out to me in the story is when the narrator is on the slave ship and he is realizing the brutal mistreatment that he and the other blacks are receiving on the ship. “the white people looked and acted, as I thought, in so savage a manner; for I had never seen among my people such instances of brutal cruelty, and this not only shown toward us blacks but also to some of the whites themselves.” (Page 59) This quote is very significant in the fact that it shows the cruelty the narrator had to endure while on the slave ship. As we can already see, things have become worse from the narrator from the first part that we read yesterday. E. The change from the first part of the reading we see an eleven year old boy that is a slave and not so desperate to escape or at least not paying the whole situation to much mind. Now we see someone who is now wishing to escape. “I was exceedingly amazed at this account and really thought they were spirits. I therefore wished much to be from amongst them for I expected they would sacrifice me: But my wishes were vain, for we were so quartered that it was impossible for any of us to make our escape.” (Page 59) The change that is evident now in the narrator is significant and is because he sees that he isn’t going to be able to escape this. He now realizes the horrifying gravity of this situation. I. I agree with Eoin’s comment about his like for the author of the story Olaudah Equiano. I really do like the story and feel like the author is very optimistic considering all he has gone through.
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Post by epoccia on Oct 28, 2013 21:55:39 GMT -5
Eddie Poccia
Mr. Thomas
English 11
10/28/13
A. I remember learning in history class about the slaveships and how horrible the conditions were. They had to sleep in wooden bunkers and they were handcuffed to each other. There were no bathrooms and they would get diseases from these living conditions. The slaves that died from disease were tossed over board even if there was another person handcuffed to them. I could not even imagine being in the place of a slave during this time period. Anyway, this story made me think of this.
E. One thing that I liked about this story was the optimism in a very difficult time. Considering all that he has gone through, the fact that he has remained optimistic is inspiring in a way.
I. As I read, I had the same question as Eoin concerning the crew giving Olaudah liquor when he got of the ship. I always thought slave traders were cruel and didn't care cabout what happened to the slaves on board.
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Post by 1adams12 on Oct 28, 2013 22:16:44 GMT -5
Michael Adams Mr. Thomas 10/28/13
F. The relationship between the blacks and the whites are hatred and major disagreement. There is an example of this through the whipping and the recapturing of the slaves that jumped over board. The relationship between the blacks from the ship and the blacks from the island are niceness because they talk to each other in their own tongue. The blacks from the land explain to the blacks on the ship that they are here to work and that they will not be eaten by the white people.
D. The lines that I liked the most in this reading are "O, ye nominal Christians! might not an African ask you, Learned you this from God who says unto you, Do unto all men as you would men should do unto you? Is it not enough that we are torn from out country and friend to toil for your luxury and lust of gain? Must every tender feeling be likewise sacrificed to your avarice?" (Page 61). The reason why I like these lines is because this is how we don't think of blacks now. I love how we were able to change our views of blacks, and then whites are able to become friend with blacks without looking down upon for doing it.
E. I personally did not like the fact on how harsh the blacks were treated and how badly the blacks were treated on the ships. The blacks were in the cargo compartment of the ship. I can't picture myself being down there, and I wouldn't want any other person go where the cargo is. The cargo is not blacks and is luggage and stuff like that. It hurt me personally to see that the blacks were treated so badly and not treated like humans.
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Post by scanley73 on Oct 28, 2013 23:02:02 GMT -5
C. I have a few short questions, not really one big overlapping question. My first question is who brought him on board the ship? Was it white people or black people? He mentions both of them having brought him onto the ship. Which one was it? Another question I have is why would unchained slaves get caught for trying to jump overboard? It’s not that difficult to simply fall off the side of a boat if you aren’t chained. Did they simply try to run through the crewmembers and jump or did they make a big scene about it instead of doing the logical and smart thing of just standing on the side and going off the side? None of these things make sense to me and hopefully these questions can be answered. D. I found it interesting that this was the first time that the author had seen water. Surely he must have seen a river or lake. He has to drink water so he’s obviously seen it before. I doubt that there was not a single large lake near him so that he would be used to seeing the water enough so that he wouldn’t be terrified when he saw the ocean. Also, he doesn’t live in the Sahara desert so he there is defiantly water near him and most settlements are built near water. A. When the author describes his complete fascination with all of the thing that he saw when he was off of the ship reminds me of how today some people are still without so many of the things that we take for granted.
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djmat
New Member
Posts: 39
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Post by djmat on Oct 28, 2013 23:04:26 GMT -5
Dj Mat Mr. Thomas English 11 10/28/13
D. "These filled me with astonishment, which was soon converted into terror when I was carried on board. I was immediately handled and tossed up to see if I were sound by some of the crew, and I was now persuaded that I had gotten into a world of bad spirits and that they were going to kill me." When he says this it really changes the mood of the story thus far. We heard about how being a slave in Africa was not so bad and in that part of the story he seems fine with it. But here he is a afraid for his life. He does not know what is about to happen to him and he is meeting white men which he has never seen in his entire life.
E. It really surprises me how he handles this situation. If it were me i would be going crazy. To see me people die on a boat and to have to live around that:"This wretched situation was again aggravated by the galling of the chains, now become insupportable, and the filth of the necessary tubs, into which the children often fell and were almost suffocated. The shrieks of the women and the groans of the dying rendered the whole a scene of horror almost inconceivable." That alone would make me want to give up seeing children my own age dying right in front of my eyes would be the most horrific thing ever. It just really astonishes me how this kid is able to handle all of this at a young age.
I. I do not know if this is correct but maybe he just got lucky with his slave trader. Maybe not all of them were so bad. There have been instances where white people treated black people kindly maybe this is just one of them.
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Post by michaelannunziata on Oct 29, 2013 10:27:47 GMT -5
Michael Annunziata Mr. Thomas English 11 10/28/13 A. I can relate to the passage in a sense of comfort. For example, when someone I just meet I really am not myself around that person because I don’t feel comfortable with them because I don’t really know them yet and this causes me to give that person a different impression. But when I am with someone I know I act myself around them and I feel a lot more comfortable which causes me to be myself around them and be who I really am. E. One thing that I really enjoyed about this reading was that it informed me with really good insight about how the slaves were treated and what the slave times were all about. It gave me good insight on how they were transported and what the ship conditions were while they were being transported and it really makes me realize what I have and it makes me think in my head to not take advantage of what I have. I also liked this reading because it actually made a pretty big impact on my life and its going to make me a better person. I. I agree with John Marano’s answer to question C, because after reading this reading I questioned the tone of the reading and what the author is trying to get at by including this tone. That’s one thing that made me really confused throughout the reading, but other then that I like this reading a lot.
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Post by rodriguezj15 on Oct 29, 2013 21:28:01 GMT -5
Joel Rodriguez Mr. Thomas English 11 October 28, 2013 Equiano, Part 2: Pgs. 58-61 B. This part of Equiano’s narrative shows more of its neoclassicist roots. One of the characteristics of neoclassicism is having a sense of nationalism which does this part does. Equiano refers a couple of times to horror of being ripped from his native country because that is your home and where his people are. He also gets a bit of relief when he sees people from his nationality on the ship. But he also expresses another characteristic of neoclassicism, the demoralization of his enemies. In this line, “O, ye nominal Christians! Might not an African ask you, ‘Learned you this from your God?’” he demoralizes the slave traders who claim to be Christians (pg 61) D. My favorite line was, “the white men had some spell or magic they put in the water when they liked in order to stop the vessel (pg 59).” This line reminds the reader that the narrator is still an eleven year old. I remember having the same sense of curiosity when I was younger, but it was this curiosity that drove him to survive perhaps. E. The “white men” were described as bad spirits. This is a good description of these characters because that’s exactly what they were. Equiano had every right to believe they were going to eat him because he, “never seen among my people such instances of brutal cruelty, and this not only shown toward us blacks but also to some of the whites themselves (pg. 59).”
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