Slavery
The major outstanding and pivotal event that greatly influenced the African American literature in the 1764-1865 was slavery and its anti-movements. This fact is buttressed by Krise (3) in succinctly stating that “Early representations of opposition to slavery tend to be overlooked or disregarded in sweeping accounts of the rise and success of the antislavery movement – particularly in accounts that focus on literary representations of opposition to slavery”. African American literature during this turbulent period in the lives of African Americans was heavily influenced by the rise in radicalism, enlightenment and the advent of industrialization.
The earliest surviving works of African American literature date from the mid-1700 and were written by Africans brought to America as slaves. These include the poem “Bars Fight ” by Lucy terry about the raid in Massachusetts and a number of poems recorded by Phillis Wheatley in 1773. The most important factor is that all these literal works touched on slavery in their themes. Rise of anti-slavery movements characterized major themes of these Literatures. Krise (5) portrays that “The antislavery movement of the later seventeenth and eighteenth centuries is often associated with progressive movements and ideas: radicalism, enlightenment, natural rights, as well as sensibility, nascent industrialism and the simultaneous decline of the master–servant relationship and the rise of wage labor”. The most documented article of the seventeenth century that centered on slavery as its theme is the Aphra Behn’s Oroonoko, also referred to as the Royal Slave. This is a true story that was later published in 1968. Centering on the theme of slavery during this period and its influence on the African American literature, it focused on other aspects of slavery such as enslavement and the relationship between the master and the servant.
Another notable literature that portrays the influence of slavery on the African American literature was “A Discourse in way of Dialogue”. This is a literal work that details the social life of an Ethiopian or Negro-Slave, and a Christian Master in America that was documented by Tyron in 1942. A synthesis of the dialogue as documented here reveals themes that captured social existences and relationship between the servant and the master. Calls for freedom and equality for all regardless of race and color marked the early part of the 18th Century. This was precipitated by nascent industrialization and the growth of knowledge and rise in wages. Changes in the lifestyles and decline in the master to servant form of slavery brought with it the understanding that African Americans could make their lives better if they wished so. The African American literature thus centered on the better living conditions and the struggle to achieve high social status measured by the level of living standards.
Historical events from other parts of the world
Lastly, the historical events from other parts of the world notably the political, social and economic events in the European countries were easily imported to the United States. Political instabilities such as civil wars in the European countries and changes in ruler ship often found their way in to the themes of African American literature (Carretta, 4). This was due to the fact that slaves in European countries had their roots in Africa and shared a common ancestry with the African Americans. A good example is demonstrated by Rosenberg (17) in stating that “The characters of George III, the circumstances accompanying his accession to the throne, and the forced abandonment by France of her colonial empire in America were probably the chief causes of the struggle between the practically unconnected American colonies and the mother-country heavily had an impact on the literal works”.
Works Cited
Carretta, Vincent. Equiano the African: Biography of a Self-Made Man. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press, 2005.
Krise, Thomas W. An Anthology of English Literature of the West Indies, 1657-1777 Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1999.
Rosenberg, Philippe. Thomas Tryon and the Seventeenth-Century Dimensions of Antislavery. The William and Mary Quarterly 3rd Series, 64:1. 2004.