Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

Oronoko, Ou Le Prince Négre. Imitation de L'Anglois, Nouvelle Dition, Revue & Corrige. Par M. de La Place by Aphra Behn

20 reviews

kathryngardyne's review against another edition

challenging dark informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Racism, Murder, Violence, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Colonisation

fieldofhats's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

Read for British Literature.

This was one of the more entertaining and exciting texts I have read for my Brit Lit class, though I don’t feel comfortable giving it more than 2 stars. I think this may have been very progressive for the early 18th century, but it’s very racist in the modern sense, which is uncomfortable at the very least. Oroonoko is constantly praised for his western features and interests, and it’s implied that he’s only beautiful because of that. And, through a series of nonsensical contrivances, he is “forced” to kill his wife and then brutally torture himself in a fit of insanity, before he is eventually put to death. This was one of the worst endings I have ever read in a book, period. Aphra Behn was going for an honor-bound duty-or-death type of thing, but it didn’t work because it wasn’t necessary. He didn’t need to kill his wife (or himself, though that’s at least a common literary theme) to take revenge. One might say that this is just a product of its time and that this is how all premodern literature is, but I call bullshit on that. In the literary world Shakespeare, the King Arthur myths, The Canterbury Tales, etc., this was just plain bad.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Racism, Colonisation, Gore, Grief, Body horror, Misogyny, Murder, Death, and Slavery

Moderate: Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Cultural appropriation, and Self harm

question47's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

0.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Violence, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Hate crime, Deportation, Cultural appropriation, Blood, Colonisation, Body horror, Torture, Slavery, Murder, Gore, Classism, Racism, Self harm, and Trafficking

Moderate: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Adult/minor relationship

ren_reading's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, Colonisation, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexism, and Slavery

waytoomanybooks's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Its difficult to give this book a star rating. This was assigned to me for a college course that is focused on early British literature. At first, I appreciated the opportunity to read something from a female author and an early example of a traditional novel. However, as the story went on, the content became more and more gruesome, and my enthusiasm for the text vanished.

The story is a very graphic depiction of an enslaved person's life on a plantation in the 1680s. And you get a cross section of everything that comes with that. The last third is especially difficult to get through. From a purely academic perspective, it's a good representation of early white supremacy, colonialism, slavery, the slave trade, racism, bigotry, misogyny, etc. And all within just sixty pages.

Don't read this book if you don't have to.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Suicide, Trafficking, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Racism, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Grief, Hate crime, Medical trauma, Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

amymegan2023's review against another edition

dark informative tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Suicide, Colonisation, Racism, and Slavery

charlieiniso's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Slavery, and Racism

tshepiso's review against another edition

1.5

Between its tedious racism, jarringly violent ending, and (to put it mildly) implausible plot Oroonoko is a novel I was never going to like. I certainly wasn't expecting it to be as weird and racist as it was but I'm not surprised at my distaste.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Slavery

ed_moore's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

This book was brutal. I think that may be the best word to describe it. Oroonoko was written in 1688 by the English writer Aphra Behn. Written in an age where British colonisation was prominent and the slave trade was ongoing, Behn writes condemning the institution of slavery, whereas not in the means that immediately you’d assume. She does not criticise the evil of the institution, instead his becoming enslaved lessens the prince Oroonoko’s nobility. This is where I note some substantial flaws in the book, firstly it’s context meaning the institution of slavery is not criticised and in some cases even justified, and secondly in regards to the protagonist of the story. Oroonoko is of nobility and depicted to have a much more comfortable experience than the ordinary slave throughout the majority of the story. Behn avoids the massive and unavoidable issues in her writing only putting emphasis on the nobility of one individual. I would also add this book is full of trigger warnings, notably the slave trade, inappropriate sexual relations and extreme violence.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Racism, Violence, and Trafficking

vanillaphantoms's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

This is a book to read if you want to study 17th century attitudes on colonialism and slavery. Interesting for sure, but not entertaining. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Death, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Murder, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, and Pregnancy

Minor: Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual assault