darbo's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Read for Undergraduate Studies stage 1 for my English lit degree.
madzie's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
ava69's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
isabellarobinson7's review against another edition
3.0
Rating: 3 stars
When I was reading this book, I kept getting that Enya song in my head. As in "Orinoco Flow". I sang it with a choir ages ago in primary school and my strongest memory of it is after all those months of practicing, finally when it came to the performance, it was one of the last songs we sang, and I was really tired, so I kind of zoned out and just got stuck singing "Sail away, sail away, sail away" over and over again for who knows how long before I woke up and realised we were past that part. BUT ANYWAY, let's actually get into Oroonoko the book, i.e. what this is all supposed to be about.
My mum bought Oroonoko for me based purely on premise. She read the back, thought "mmm, sounds like something Isabella would like" and got it for me (thanks Mum!). When I myself read the blurb, I agreed - this book sounded like something right up my alley when it comes to taste in classics.
One thing I was most interested to find out was how an English woman from the 17th century would write a black man. Now obviously I can't really speak to the authenticity of Oroonoko's depiction. I am not a person of colour myself nor an expert in this particular period of world history, but from my rather uninformed perspective, I can say it was refreshing to at least have a character break the mold when it comes to typical narrative leads of the 1600s. And to add to that, I will give Aphra Behn credit for her seemingly deliberate inclusion of a cast from several different nationalities and backgrounds.
It wasn't without hiccup, though. There are a few remarks surrounding black people that perhaps have not aged well, but you can kind of gloss over those, but then I found out Imoinda was 15 or 16… ew. (Also, her name kind of sounds like "ointment" so in my head she was just "Ointment Lady"... though in hindsight that probably should have been "Ointment Girl".) Yes. Imoinda, the sole love interest of our adult main character, was herself practically a child. Obviously, this obsession authors used to have with romanticising relationships involving underage girls (I say "used to" optimistically) was not exclusively a male issue.
There was one line in particular that made me snort:
Said like a true white person. This review is just turning out to be a pile of personal anecdotes, but this made me think of a story my mum told me about when she was a cook for a lord and lady in England and they wouldn't let her put garlic on anything! Yes! Garlic! Apparently, they thought it was only a French and/or Italian thing, thus beneath them. AND (get this) they didn't like the way the people in France and Italy... smelled. Yes. The French. They thought French smelled. Not only that, they thought the French smelled bad. France, the perfume capital of the world where approximately 30% of the world's perfumes are created! They literally dominate the global perfume business! And these are the people that smell?! And to round it all off, this couple was from London, aka Smog City! That's like someone from Rotorua trying to tell me that Queenstown smells. I don't know, maybe their noses are just defunct after all those years living in an odorous cloud.
So that's it. That's all I have to say about Oroonoko by Aphra Behn. It had some high points, and some low ones, but I fully recognise that I am looking at this through not only a modern lens, but a white modern lens, so I wouldn't put too much weight in my opinion if I were you.
When I was reading this book, I kept getting that Enya song in my head. As in "Orinoco Flow". I sang it with a choir ages ago in primary school and my strongest memory of it is after all those months of practicing, finally when it came to the performance, it was one of the last songs we sang, and I was really tired, so I kind of zoned out and just got stuck singing "Sail away, sail away, sail away" over and over again for who knows how long before I woke up and realised we were past that part. BUT ANYWAY, let's actually get into Oroonoko the book, i.e. what this is all supposed to be about.
My mum bought Oroonoko for me based purely on premise. She read the back, thought "mmm, sounds like something Isabella would like" and got it for me (thanks Mum!). When I myself read the blurb, I agreed - this book sounded like something right up my alley when it comes to taste in classics.
One thing I was most interested to find out was how an English woman from the 17th century would write a black man. Now obviously I can't really speak to the authenticity of Oroonoko's depiction. I am not a person of colour myself nor an expert in this particular period of world history, but from my rather uninformed perspective, I can say it was refreshing to at least have a character break the mold when it comes to typical narrative leads of the 1600s. And to add to that, I will give Aphra Behn credit for her seemingly deliberate inclusion of a cast from several different nationalities and backgrounds.
It wasn't without hiccup, though. There are a few remarks surrounding black people that perhaps have not aged well, but you can kind of gloss over those, but then I found out Imoinda was 15 or 16… ew. (Also, her name kind of sounds like "ointment" so in my head she was just "Ointment Lady"... though in hindsight that probably should have been "Ointment Girl".) Yes. Imoinda, the sole love interest of our adult main character, was herself practically a child. Obviously, this obsession authors used to have with romanticising relationships involving underage girls (I say "used to" optimistically) was not exclusively a male issue.
There was one line in particular that made me snort:
"They served every one their mess [portion of a meal] on these pieces of leaves, and it was very good, but too high-seasoned with pepper."
Said like a true white person. This review is just turning out to be a pile of personal anecdotes, but this made me think of a story my mum told me about when she was a cook for a lord and lady in England and they wouldn't let her put garlic on anything! Yes! Garlic! Apparently, they thought it was only a French and/or Italian thing, thus beneath them. AND (get this) they didn't like the way the people in France and Italy... smelled. Yes. The French. They thought French smelled. Not only that, they thought the French smelled bad. France, the perfume capital of the world where approximately 30% of the world's perfumes are created! They literally dominate the global perfume business! And these are the people that smell?! And to round it all off, this couple was from London, aka Smog City! That's like someone from Rotorua trying to tell me that Queenstown smells. I don't know, maybe their noses are just defunct after all those years living in an odorous cloud.
So that's it. That's all I have to say about Oroonoko by Aphra Behn. It had some high points, and some low ones, but I fully recognise that I am looking at this through not only a modern lens, but a white modern lens, so I wouldn't put too much weight in my opinion if I were you.
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.
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.
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
vlw195's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
kpezza's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
s_shetty's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
ilseoo's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 stars.
I had to read this book for university.
I found the book well written and I liked the insight into the 17th century culture of the original inhabitants of Surinam. However, even though the Europeans certainly did not escape criticism, the racism in this book (such as describing Oroonoko as handsome only because his features are more European than African and ascribing his good manners to his European tutor) threw me off too much. I also felt that at times it romanticised slavery and the circumstances of the sugar plantation. I know this book played a role in the battle against the slave trade, but for modern-day readers it is still very racist and downplays the horrible circumstances of slavery.
I had to read this book for university.
I found the book well written and I liked the insight into the 17th century culture of the original inhabitants of Surinam. However, even though the Europeans certainly did not escape criticism, the racism in this book (such as describing Oroonoko as handsome only because his features are more European than African and ascribing his good manners to his European tutor) threw me off too much. I also felt that at times it romanticised slavery and the circumstances of the sugar plantation. I know this book played a role in the battle against the slave trade, but for modern-day readers it is still very racist and downplays the horrible circumstances of slavery.