Reviews

Unchained Voices: An Anthology of Black Authors in the English-Speaking World of the Eighteenth Century by Vincent Carretta

lawrenceevalyn's review

5.0

A totally invaluable resource and I’m one that I’m sure I will return to frequently. I can see a lot of pedagogical applications for Sancho’s letters, especially if teaching Sterne. Cugoano is blisteringly insightful and a perfect anecdote to assumptions that it was impossible for people in the 18thC to see the impacts of colonialism. I especially appreciated Cugoano’s intersectional insights on the impact of colonialism on Indigenous peoples; in general, I was surprised by the frequency with with Indigenous groups played a role as almost a commonplace fact of life in the various narratives. It was great to be able to become attuned to the personal differences between these writers and get a sense of their individuality. Occasionally Caretta abridged some thing I would rather have been left in (who cuts an expedition to the North Pole in favor of social calls in London??) but this volume is a great starting place. There’s a lot more I want to read from here!