Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'
Barracoon: The Story of the Last Slave by Zora Neale Hurston
2 reviews
tinyflame4's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Slavery, and Trafficking
Moderate: Violence, Colonisation, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Kidnapping, Animal death, and Racism
nytephoenyx's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
4.25
Barracoon relates the story of Kossula – one of the last Black men to be sold into slavery from Africa to the United States. This biography is an interestingly formatted one, more a collection of afternoon conversations than a traditional biography. For the content of this biography, I think that style is perfect.
Kossula’s story is woven with his history, day-to-day, and stories. Some day, Hurston would barely converse with him at all which other days, Kossula easily shared his memories from Africa. His story includes pieces of his father’s and grandfather’s stories, building a brief generational record rather than one just of emotional experience.
Historical biographies can be complicated to record because it’s very easy for the recorder to insert themselves in the narrative. It can be challenging not to set these stories in the framework of our own personal belief and/or socially accepted fact. Hurston’s ability to separate herself from Kossula’s story, especially when his narrative differed from what she understood, is admirable. It also gives greater power to Kossula’s story itself.
Barracoon: The Story of the Last “Black Cargo” is short as for as biographies go. You won’t get the whole story from birth to the moment of telling. In fact, you’ll only get a few snapshots of his remarkable life. What stands out the most is the emotions he shares – grief, pain, love, and loneliness. The use of his original dialect and interjections add to this. According to the (extensive) foreword, Hurston fought to keep the dialect in and as a result this manuscript was not published until recently, posthumously. While it’s unfortunate it took this long for Kossula’s story to be heard in long-form, I agree with her push to capture his authentic voice.
Albeit short, Barracoon is a unique piece of historical significance, seeking to share the voice of a freed slave in a dialogue dominated by white men. It’s well worth a read to get a glimpse of the preserved culture and to better round your understanding of American slavery.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Murder, Racism, Slavery, Trafficking, and Violence
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Colonisation
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