Aphra Behn's 1688 novella follows an African prince sold into slavery in Suriname, exploring themes of honor, love, and colonial brutality through the tragic story of Oroonoko and his beloved Imoinda. Often considered one of the first English novels, this groundbreaking work of fiction offers both a romance and an early critique of the slave trade from the perspective of England's first professional female writer.
Since the World is grown so Nice and Critical upon Dedications, and will Needs be Judging the Book by the Wit of the Patron; we ought, with a great deal of Circumspection to chuse a Person against whom there can be no Exception; and whose Wit and Worth truly Merits all that one is capable of saying upon that Occasion. The most part of Dedications are charg'd with Flattery; and if the World knows a Man has some Vices, they will not allow one to speak of his Virtues. This, My Lord, is for want of thinking Rightly; if Men wou'd consider with Reason, they wou'd have another sort of Opinion, and Esteem of Dedications; and wou'd believe almost every Great Man has enough to make him Worthy of all that can be said of him there. My Lord, a Picture-drawer, when he intends to make a good Picture, essays the Face many Ways, and in many Lights, before he begins; that he may chuse from the several tur…Continue reading →
Browse all Fiction · 17th-18th C works