them into the woods. They spent the night in a house where they were not fed. Equiano remembered the shock and isolation that he felt during the Middle Passage. He feared that the European slave traders would eat him. His captors complexions, hair and language were different than any he had heard. Equiano saw many black people chained together. He fainted from the over powering horror and anguish. The black slave traders sold him. He was given liquor, which made him sick. Then the slave traders abandoned him and left the ship. When the white men offered him food, he refused and they beat him severely. The conditions on board were horrible. People died from the stench and filth. The white people described their land to Equiano and told him he would work there. The passage was suffocating and he prayed for death but could not escape. In Africa, Equiano's father owned slaves. African people became slaves through warfare or as punishment for a crime, such as adultery. The slave traders had to prove that their captives were legally taken or they risked becoming slaves. Equiano knew how profitable slavery was in Africa. Soon though Equiano discovered that Europeans understood both differently. Europeans thought of slavery as an economic relationship and a slave a piece of property. Most of the slaves were treated brutally by the Europeans. Equiano's memories are filled with the severe cruelties inflicted by the slave owners. He witnessed many Negro women and girl slaves raped. He witnessed hangings, burnings, and beating. In Montserrat, Equiano found that the slaves were well treated. In Banbados, Equiano encountered a man who allowed his slaves a break during the day. Unfortunately most slaves believed this to be true for all. In St. Kitts, slaves were branded with the letters of their master's name. They were forced to wear chains, never respected, and were not allowed to own property. Slaves became free by buying their freedom. Equiano co...
