Humanities & Social Sciences Seminar 2: Slave Narratives and the Literature of Abolition

The second OxNet seminar was led by Dr Ushasi Dasgupta from Pembroke College, Oxford, on the topic of ‘Slave Narratives and the Literature of Abolition’. Guided by Dr Dasgupta, notions of identity, race, and the narrative form were explored and discussed. The idea of slave narratives as a window into the historical consideration of abolition was considered, and the role that literary devices can play in shaping this was a particularly illuminating part of the seminar. Gender, race, and age are key themes that slave narratives can help to draw attention to, and especially in relation to the side of ‘the Enlightenment’ which was decidedly not focused upon toleration and understanding.