Comparing Matteo and Oaludah as Intercultural figures

Intercultural historical figures play a crucial role in demonstrating the impact of culture on the life of an individual. Sometimes the enormous influence of culture is not apparent when people who were born and lived their entire life in similar or closely related cultures are studied. Conversely, when individuals who had to live in a different cultural setting from their own reveals the elusive impacts of culture on people. As long as an individual has the right attitude and the courage to adventure into new territories, it is possible to overcome any obstacles encountered, embrace the new way of life, and settle. This paper will compare and contrast the lives of two intercultural historical figures and how they were able to overcome cultural and language barriers.

Olaudah Equiano, also referred to as Gustavus Vassa was born in 1745 in Nigeria, a West African country. At 11, he was sold as a slave and transferred from one owner to another in  Africa to a ship.  He was forced to put up with the horrors of the transatlantic slave ship as it transported them into West Indies. The slave ship would later carry him into new lands several miles away from home.  Although his travel to Europe was accidental for he later develops a passion for traveling traversing most parts of Europe. Though he spent a transitory period in Virginia, much of Equiano’s period in slavery was working for the captains of slave ships as well as British navy vessels (Footnoting History, 2013). Matteo Ricci, on the other hand, was born in Italy in 1552 a later moved as a Jesuit missionary to spread the gospel in the Chinese empires of the 16^th century.  He stayed in China for about thirty years and pioneered attempts to foster interrelations between the Chinese and western civilization. He, like Olaudah, adopted the Chinese culture as well as language, enabling him to access the deep interior of China, which at the time was unreachable by foreigners (Matteo Ricci, n.d.) Like Olaudah, he became an extensive traveler though unlike Olaudah, his travel was not accidental but rather voluntary.

Another contrasting fact about two intercultural figures is the fact that while Olaudah was a poor African child sold as a slave at 11, Matteo was the first-born son of an affluent Italian family in Macerata. Matteo’s father was a pharmacist and served as a governor of the city. He undertook classical studies early in life before proceeding to study law before he requested to undertake missionary life in 1571 due to his attraction to their way of life. Therefore his travel was planned for and not accompanied by lots of suffering and impoverishment like that of Olaudah. After joining the Jesuit missionaries like Olaudah, Matteo also dedicated part of his time for scientific research besides missionary work. He was ordained into the priesthood in 1580 and was ordered in 1582 to proceed on his mission to China.  It was one of his bosses, Henry Pascal, who gave Equiano the name Gustavus Vassa, which he used all through his life, though he put out his autobiography in his African name. During his service to Captain Pascal and other merchant masters, Equiano journeyed widely, visiting Caribbean England, Scotland, Gibraltar, Holland Nova Scotia, the Caribbean, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. He was acquired in 1763 by Robert King, a Quaker merchant for whom he worked as a clerk among other masters. Later Equiano was permitted to get involved in his petty trade exchanges, from which he saved enough money to buy his freedom in 1766.

Upon getting freedom, Olaudah settled in England in 1767, joining the school and employed as an assistant to scientist Dr. Charles Irving. Equiano never stopped to travel, making numerous voyages aboard interchange vessels to Italy, Turkey, Portugal, Grenada, Jamaica, and North America. In 1773 he went along with Irving on a polar mission in pursuit of a northeast route from Europe to Asia.  In 1789 Equiano put out his autobiography, the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa, the African. It went through nine editions during his lifetime. He wedded Susanna Cullen in 1792, with the sired two daughters before he later died in London in 1797 (Footnoting History, 2013), showing his ability to settle in the new country.

In his autobiography Volume, he unlocks an account of Equiano’s native African culture, with customs related to clothing, food, and religious activities. He equates the occupants of Oboe to the early Jews and proposes a theory that dark African skin is due to exposure to the scorching, tropical climates. He hints that Africans could be the indirect blood relatives of Christian Europeans from their Jewish ancestry and is against slavery as an affront to all human beings (Footnoting History, 2013). Matteo, on the other hand, arrived at Macau, China, in 1582 and immediately began learning the Chinese language (Matteo Ricci, n.d.). It is similar to Olaudah, who soon after arriving at West Indies. Matteo and the other missionaries initially spent most of their time learning Chinese language, culture, and etiquette and desisted from imposing their faith on the inhabitants of China.  Soon after, they produced the first Catechism in Chinese language and a remarkable map of the world with ‘ten thousand countries’ helping the Chinese elite to conceive the geographical location of china relative to the other parts of the world. Olaudah, on the other hand, had published his autobiography, which had nine editions and two volumes. In the autobiography, he gave a comprehensive narration about eh African culture, etiquette, and religion and even compared it with the Jewish culture. Like Olaudah, Matteo felt increasingly at home in china and attempted to make entry into the imperial town of china, Beijing (Matteo Ricci, n.d.). His efforts failed at first due to the political atmosphere that made all foreigners suspect. He then moved to another city, where he befriended two Chinese royal princesses before writing a book in Chinese on ‘friendship’ He also studied geography, astronomy, and history before making his second attempt to enter Beijing and succeeded in January of 1601.

While in Beijing, Matteo was not allowed to see the emperor, but together with his Jesuit colleagues, they were permitted to stay. From then onwards, he continued to live in the city and dedicated his life to its people. While there, he taught the gospel while teaching them science. While there, his mission led him to meet many outstanding personalities and wrote several books. His success was due to his ability to overcome cultural barriers and make friends with people of a different race, culture, and religion (Matteo Ricci, n.d.). His revelations about his friend Feng shows clearly the spirit of a great missionary ‘by taking affairs of the people as if they were his own and them taking his affairs as if they were their own.’

Equiano, on the other hand, continues his educations and his religious development autonomously whenever possible. Still, his official visit to England is always transitory as he proceeds to sea with his captain whenever Pascal and the ship are prepared for a fresh voyage. The expeditions are always fraught with risk, and he describes frequent skirmishes and sieges through the Mediterranean, Atlantic, and West Indian Oceans. Equiano truly works for Pascal for many years and, believing that Pascal’s kindheartedness implies an assurance to free him, he is surprised at abrupt treachery during a layover in England, when Pascal has him crudely seized and enforced into a barge. Pascal trades Equiano to Captain James Doran, the captain of a ship destined for the West Indies. Dazed by his unexpected change in fortunes, Equiano contends with Captain Doran that Pascal “could not trade me to him, nor any other person. . . I have worked for him. . . several years, and withheld my wages and prize-money. . . I being baptized, and by the laws of the land, no man has a right to sell me”. (Footnoting History, 2013) Disappointed at the circumstances in which he now finds himself, Equiano starts to believe his new state is a result of God’s penalty for his sins and soon resigns himself to his new life.

Therefore both intercultural historical figures featured here had many similarities in the accounts of their lives and their character. Both of them had a strong drive to travel and adventure and possessed the courage to go into new territories despite the risks associated with it. They traversed different continents from the ones they were born in encountering new races, cultures, and religions, among other differences. They were able to go beyond the narrow cultural scope of their places of birth and embrace foreign culture and religion. Both made lasting and genuine friendships in their new land and settled there for the rest of their lives, effectively overcoming the urge to go back home. Here we learn that with the right attitude, courage, and flexibility, anyone can overcome cultural barriers and embrace new foreign ways of life.

REFERENCE

Footnoting History (2013)Special Edition: Olaudah Equiano

Retrieved from http://web.archive.org/web/20040528221232/www.northpark.edu/history/Classes/Sources/Equiano.html

Matteo Ricci (n.d.)

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