A close reading of an extract from Aphra Behn's "Oroonoko".

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Close reading of an extract from Aphra Behn’s Oroonoko, based on language, structure, and narrative position.

This extract, from Aphra Behn’s controversial Oroonoko, presents the prince’s reaction to his capture after a slave uprising is foiled and he is apprehended. Since Behn is writing in a third person narrative, something which can be limiting, I will be discussing the way in which in she exposes his mental agony through use of linguistic devices, punctuation and structure. I will also be contemplating  how Behn’s use of binary opposites and narrative, which are developed throughout the novel, entwine and unite to reveal a deeper meaning with in the text. The portrayal of this emotional experience is developed in a number of ways and builds an engrossing portrait of his volatile mental state. It also confirms a number of moral themes which Behn has highlighted throughout the novel.  

One aspect which is initially striking, is the extracts structure. The whole item is made up of two sections, each of which is constructed from one complex compound sentence. Each sentence is extensive and includes several semicolons. Behn begins each paragraph with an introductory statement. In the first, this is as follows: “…Caesar told him, there was no Faith in the White Men, or the Gods they Ador’d”. She then uses the punctuation to create a list of why this is so; be it because of their “Principles so false” or that they “profess[ed] so much (and)  perform[ed] so little”. In doing this Behn is able to do two things. Firstly, Oroonoko’s anti-Christian thought (he could “...never be reconcil’d with our notions of the trinity”) come to an explosive release, with the reader experiencing the extent of his views for the first time. This outpour is important as Behn has only allowed glimpses of him from a removed perspective – it creates a new depth of closeness, which makes his capture all the more distressing. Behn is also able to give the reader a sense of Oroonoko’s mental state. The list-like structure of the paragraph and the pauses suggested by the punctuation seem to slow the thought process down. This creates a sense of a calm outrage and disgust which is slightly disconcerting. Interestingly, Behn makes it clear that he is angrier with the slaves. In this second paragraph there are numerous, highly derogatory adjectives and phrases used to describe them. Behn separates these using commas; this gives the impression that they are being said in quick succession, and suggest the character is feeling more inflamed here: “Dogs, treacherous…cowardly, fit for such masters”.  It is clear he feels the blame is with them and he cannot forgive their cowardice.

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Behn uses a number of important linguistic devices to heighten and reinforce  Oroonoko’s emotional state here. She  juxtaposes plosives and frictives through out the exerpt, placing soft sibilance and hard consonants in close proximity. This is particularly present in the second paragraph as he says “Slaves, poor, wretched Rogues, fit to be used as Christians’ Tools”. The repeated ‘s’ and ‘f’ sounds slow the sentence down. This combined with the hard ‘r’, ‘d’, ‘ch’ and ‘t’ sounds, which cut the languid frictives short creates the sense that he is spitting the words out. She also includes alliteration and repitition ...

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