Narrated by the first and second hand witness of the story, Aphra Behn’s “Oroonoko” is told by the perspective of a wealthy English woman. Having this narrator interpret and support the rebellion of black slaves was what I thought unusual and unexpected.

Not only does the story tell of the struggles of the ultimate minority in that time period, but it is told by a woman. While Behn’s success as a writer was due to her ability to write like a man, she tries to appeal to the public and struggles of oppressed black slaves through romantic eyes. I find it contradictory that a subject so brutal and harsh is written by a romantic view. By writing about the exotic and foreign nature of the oriental setting, this environment of the unknown appeals to English readers as a safe visit to the South. From the comfort of their own homes they can vicariously witness the horrors and violence of other lands.

While in my last posts I criticize the translated perspective of time, I think this text has great success and relevance in literature because it tries to support something that was very forward thinking in that day. In alignment to our views, we can read back and somewhat agree with Behn’s supposed motivation of sparing awareness.

I also found myself very confused that the narrator supported Caesar (Oroonoko) in his attempts at freedom. Because slave labour was so common and valuable to the economy at that time period, I thought it odd that a woman, whose lifestyle is most likely supported by slave labour of one form or another, would support revolt against their oppressors.

Lastly, I was utterly furious at the outcome of this text. I am ashamed that I seem to only write posts about what displeases me (I really did enjoy the texts of this class for the most part), I just felt that Oroonoko killing his wife and then dying was so grossly avoidable. While not always seeking a happy ending, I am, however, most definitely a reader who craves closure. In killing his wife, I thought Oroonoko selfish and misogynist. I felt like it was so unnecessary that they both had to die. If anything, let your wife live and live without you.