Autobiographical writing as a rich source for the exploration of European childhood and youth is self evident; in many cases, it is one of the most nuanced ways to understand historical actors' earliest experiences. Such is the case in Russia, where… [more]

One of the very first slave narratives, The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano (1745-1797), served as a prototype for the well-known slave autobiographies of the 19th century written by such fugitive slaves as Frederick Douglass and Harriet… [more]

Analysis of excerpts from The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa the African helps students to reconstruct children's experience under slavery, to place slavery in a world history perspective, and to explore the problems facing historians in assessing evidence and addressing the problematic nature of sources. echo [more]