Similarities and Differences Between Equiano Olaudah and John Smith

Student’s Name
Course
Instructor
Date
Compare and Contrast Essay
The authors Equiano Olaudah and John Smith have without doubt contributed much to both literature and history through their works. By exploring their works in the “Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano” and “General History of Virginia”, it is evident that there is a lot that is shared and that differ in equal measure.
Even though Equiano and Smith grew up in different circumstances and time, there are some similarities in their works and experiences. To begin with, it is important to note that the settings of the books by the two authors are both in the colonial period. Another notable similarity is that they both spoke from the position of captivity. On his side Equiano recounts his experiences as a black slave captured by the Americans while on the other, Smith tells of his case whereby as a colonist the Native Americans captured him. Another interesting fact is that the works of both the authors were discredited as being false even though for different reasons. In Equiano’s case, this discrediting was because of the fact that he was African. Since blacks were generally believed to exaggerate their experiences as slaves, this made his story not to be believed too. Smith on his part was discredited as giving false information concerning is experiences among the Native Americans. In his writing, he tells of how he was treated as a “god” amongst them while in actual sense he was almost killed by the same people. The irony in this is what made many not to believe his story (Thompson, N.p). For both authors there is an element of seeking independence. Equiano’s memoir is a clear indication of how he tried to break free from being a slave and regain his freedom. Eventually, he gets to enjoy this freedom and even gets a business through which he also becomes independent. In Smith’s book, he demonstrated the importance of being independent and even called others to seek this independence. This fact is evident when he talked about colonizing the New World. He points out that everyone can be their own master or owner if they chose to work hard.
Even though Smith and Equiano share some similarities as shown in their works, there are also some significant differences worth noting. For instance, the authors have different points of vie...