A compelling and sympathetic novel, “Oroonoko” is regarded as one of the earliest of English novels, which was immensely popular in its time and shone an important light on the brutality of slavery in the English colonies.

When their request is denied, Oroonoko plans a slave revolt, an action when ultimately leads to the novel’s tragic conclusion. Imoinda becomes pregnant and the two petition their master to be returned to their homeland. The two live together as husband and wife under their slave names of Caesar and Clemene. After travelling to Surinam, an English colony at the time, Oroonoko is surprisingly reunited with Imoinda. Oroonoko, believing that the king is too old to consummate their marriage, secretly plans a romantic rendezvous with Imoinda, an action which consequently results in the two being sold into slavery.

When the king hears of Imoinda’s beauty he demands that she become one of his wives, giving her a sacred veil, thus forcing her to become a member of his harem.

Paperback (February 21st, 2013): $11.First published in 1688, “Oroonoko” follows the tragic love story of Oroonoko, an African prince, and his beloved Imoinda.

When the kingwho is also in love with Imoindacatches wind of their affair, he sells Imoinda as a slave. Interest in it has increased since the 1970s, with critics arguing that Behn is the foremother of British female writers, and that Oroonoko is a crucial text in the history of the novel. Oroonoko Aphra Behn Book details Table of contents Citations About This Book Oroonoko, the grandson of an African king, is madly in love with Imoinda, the daughter of the kings general. Published less than a year before she died, Oroonoko is sometimes described as one of the first novels in English. She began writing prose fiction in the 1680s, probably in response to the consolidation of theatres that led to a reduced need for new plays. Behn, often cited as the first known professional female writer, was a successful playwright, poet, translator and essayist. Behn's text is a first-person account of Oroonoko's life, love, rebellion, and execution. The eponymous hero is an African prince from Coramantien who is tricked into slavery and sold to European colonists in Surinam where he meets the narrator.

Oroonoko: or, the Royal Slave is a short work of prose fiction by Aphra Behn (1640-1689), published in 1688 by William Canning and reissued with two other fictions later that year.

Oroonoko ebook