On Being Brought from Africa to America

On Being Brought from Africa to America

Equiano vs. Wheatley

On Being Brought from Africa to America

By Phillis Wheatley

'Twas mercy brought me from my Pagan land,

Taught my benighted soul to understand

That there's a God, that there's a Saviour too:

Once I redemption neither sought nor knew.

Some view our sable race with scornful eye,

"Their colour is a diabolic die."

Remember, Christians, Negros, black as Cain,

May be refin'd, and join th' angelic train.

Equiano Questions:

  1. Which statement summarizes the central idea of the selection?
  2. White men are all devils who deserve the worst punishment
  3. England is the best place for an ex-slave to find his voice
  4. Being torn away from family is the worst part of slaver
  5. Slave ships were an evil necessity during the slave trade
  1. Which quote best summarizes the purpose of the Equiano selection?
  2. “I did not know what this could mean, and indeed I thought these people were full of nothing but magical arts.”
  3. “The stench of the hold while we were on the coast was so intolerably loathsome that is was dangerous to remain there for any time.”
  4. “From the time I left my own nation I always found somebody who understood me until I came to the seacoast.”
  5. “Are the dearest friends and relations, nor rendered more dear by their separation from their kindred, still to be parted from each other and this prevented from cheering the gloom of slavery with the small comfort of being together and mingling their sufferings and sorrows?”
  1. How does Equiano develop his ideas in his narrative?
  2. By giving a comparison to slavery in African and slavery in America
  3. By vividly describing the suffering and turmoil that slavery creates
  4. By giving an historical overview of slavery in Africa
  5. By presenting both perspectives, African and American, of the slavery issue
  1. How does the description in the sentence below connect with the ideas throughout the slave ship section?

a. By introducing the extreme suffering of the slaves, the author links the suffering of the sailors, justifyingtheir captivity.

b. By introducing the extreme suffering of the slaves, the author creates a contrast between their lives and therewarding lives of the sailors.

c. By vividly describing the suffering of the slaves, the author reinforces the inhumanity of slavery

d. By vividly describing the suffering of the slaves, the author creates a sense of anticipation of arrival in Barbados

5. How does Equiano’s series of questions in the last paragraph contribute to the central idea?

  1. The rhetorical questions point out the hypocrisy of slavery in Africa
  2. The rhetorical questions illustrate the basic inhumanity of slavery
  3. The rhetorical questions prove that Africans can be educated
  4. The rhetorical questions prove that is a Christian

Wheatley Questions:

  1. Which lines from the poem support the central idea?
  2. Remember, Christians, Negros, black as Cain,/May be refin’d, and join the’ angelic train
  3. Once I redemption neither sought nor knew
  4. Some view our sable race with scornful eye,/”Their color is a diabolic die.”
  5. That there’s a God, that there’s a Saviour too:
  1. What is the effect of the imagery in the sentence below:
  1. It enhances the theme that whites are superior to African slaves
  2. It demonstrates the bias whites feel for black people
  3. It helps readers visualize slaves
  4. It enhances a tone of longing for her homeland
  1. How does the author’s use of language enhance the theme of the poem?
  2. The diction (word choice) shows that white people are superior to African slaves
  3. The use of African dialect reveals Wheatley’s tribal origins
  4. The imagery create an ironic tone that reveals the poet’s distaste of whites
  5. The educated words that Wheatley uses demonstrates that black people can be just as cultured as white people
  1. What is the author’s purpose in writing this selection?
  2. To persuade the white people to stop the slave trade
  3. To entertain her masters with her writing ability
  4. To convince white people that the black race is just as worthy as the whites
  5. To inform her masters that she is better off in America

Using textual evidence from the two selections, compare how each author uses language to enhance and support the central ideas of the texts.

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