Spiritual autobiographies, or conversion stories, were popular forms of literature in the 17th and 18th centuries among both Americans and Europeans. Daniel Shea explains that a spiritual autobiography "is primarily concerned with the question of grace: whether or not the individual has been accepted into divine life, an acceptance signified by psychological and moral changes that the autobiographer comes to discern in his or her past experience " (XI) . As a result, these types of texts were often used as religious, political, or cultural propaganda. With this in mind, Olaudah Equiano's The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African by Himself (1789), and John Marrant's Narrative of the Lord's Wonderful Dealings with John Marrant, a Black (1785) do not seem apparently interconnected. Equiano's narrative tells the story of an eleven-year-old black boy who is captured and must endure the trials and tribulations of the slave trade and the injustices related to it. In contrast, John Marrant is a free, educated black male who accepts Christianity, voluntarily abandons his family, and assimilates into Native American culture. While at first glance these texts seem completely unrelated, a closer look at their similarities reveals their belonging to the same genre. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Although Equiano's text is generally studied as a slave narrative and Marrant's as a captivity narrative, it is very helpful to understand both works as spiritual autobiographies, or conversion narratives. In this sense, the simple structure of both stories suggests their belonging to the genre of spiritual autobiography. In general, spiritual autobiographies and conversion stories are characterized by the author's journey from rags to riches, from damnation to salvation, or from ignorance to grace. Indeed, both Equiano's Interesting Tale and John Marrant's Tale of the Lord's Wonderful Treatments follow this structure. For example, in Equiano's case, the former slave becomes a well-known, educated, and respected abolitionist. His narrative follows him from his African pagan roots to his end result as a saved and free black man. Born in 1745 in what is now Nigeria, Equiano was captured and sold to slave traders heading to the West Indies at the age of eleven. After a brief stay in Virginia, Captain Henry Pascal purchased Equiano as a “gift to some of his friends in England” and renamed it Gustavas Vassa (Equiano 36). It is under Pascal's ownership that Equiano is exposed to Christianity, a force that will guide his success until the end of his life. After spending much time traveling with Pascal, he was sold again in 1763 to a man named Robert King. Working on Mr. King's trading sloops, Equiano was able to profit from smaller trades, eventually allowing him to purchase his freedom in 1766. Once free, he returned to England where he began attending school and even got a job as an assistant. to scientist Dr. Charles Irving (Potkay & Burr 159-162). As commonly seen in spiritual autobiographies, Equiano's humble beginnings transform into a life of success, ultimately aided by his discovery of Christianity. Likewise, John Marrant's Account of the Marvelous Operations of the Lord follows this same path of damnation to salvation. His narrative details his life as a free black child in the American colonies, his Christian conversion, his capture by theNative Cherokee tribe, its assimilation into Indian culture, and its subsequent spiritual and cultural transformation (Potkay & Burr 67-74). Feeling dejected and unaccepted by his family due to his newfound spirituality, Marrant wanders off into the desert “to return home altogether” (Marrant 16). Despite the problems he suffered and the navigation in unknown areas, Marrant explains «the Lord Jesus Christ was very present and this comforted him in everything» (18). Eventually, he comes across an “Indian hunter” who takes Marrant back to his village after realizing how far from home he has traveled (19). Although his initial relationship with the Cherokee tribe leaves him imprisoned and destined for execution, it is his relationship with God that leads him to be accepted into the Native community. As Katherine Chiles points out in Transformable Race, the hopeless and fearful black wanderer transforms into a renowned and respected Indian preacher (123). Thus, John Marrant's narrative, as well as Equiano's, closely follows the rags-to-riches, grace-to-salvation structure commonly found in other spiritual autobiographies of the period. According to Daniel Shea, spiritual autobiographies are characterized by the author allowing God and divine intervention as a decisive factor in their life (XII). In both Marrant and Equiano's accounts, God becomes the guiding force in their lives almost immediately after their first contact with Christianity. For Marrant, this happens when he is going to "play [music] for some gentlemen" and comes across a "large meeting house" where "a mad man...[is] shouting in there" (10). Recognizing that this is preaching a sermon, Marrant's friend encourages him to interrupt the service by loudly blowing his French horn. When Marrant is ready to do so, “the mad man,” the famous Reverend George Whitefield, shouts, “PREPARE TO MEET THY GOD, O ISRAEL” while looking “directly at [Marrant] and pointing with his finger” (10, 11 ). After this spiritual encounter, Marrant is knocked to the ground “speechless and senseless” by Whitefield's invocation of God and falls ill for the next three days until a minister is sent to convert him to Christianity, healing him of his ailments ( 11). Returning to the demands of a spiritual autobiography, it is this moment of divine intervention that gives way to Marrant's subsequent conflicts in which he must rely completely on God to pave the way for his life. Likewise, Equiano's first encounter with the presence of God ignites his interest in the spiritual world and guides all his decisions thereafter. Upon his first arrival in England and first sight of snow, twelve-year-old Equiano asks his shipmate "what is it for and who made it", to which his shipmate replies, "a great man in the skies, called God” (39). Through this brief explanation of God, “Equiano's immediate ambition had been realized” (Walvin 91). Equiano goes on to describe the effect this moment had on him: After this I went to church; and having never been to such a place before, I was again astonished to see and hear the service. I asked all I could about it; and they made me understand that it was "to worship God, who made us and all things ". I was still perplexed and soon found myself in an endless field of questions, as well as how I could speak and ask for information (39). In particular, Equiano sees his newfound spirituality as the strongest force in his life as his faith in God he begins to grow. It is this same unshakable faith that makes Equiano feel more secure and confident in his ability to transform into someone loved by God instead of his previous damned state. For example, when seven people, including the sameEquiano, fell from the upper deck of the ship and no one was injured, Equiano credited God with having spared his life: "I thought I could clearly trace the hand of God, without whose permission a sparrow cannot fall. I began to arouse my fear from man to him alone, and to call upon his holy name daily with fear and reverence: and I trust that he has heard my supplications (53) Likewise, the power of God directly saves John's life also Marrant. After Marrant's family rejects him and his adopted religion, he goes to the desert, testifying that "the Lord Jesus Christ was very present, and this comforted him in everything" (18). Indian hunter,” Marrant informs him that he has been “supported by the Lord” even though the Indian is ignorant of Christianity (19). Despite this, the Indian hunter convinces Marrant to join him in returning to the native village arrives at the Indian community, is separated from the man he met in the desert and forced to answer to the rest of the tribe of his intentions and purposes for his presence there, or he will be executed. Unable to explain his presence satisfactorily, he is thrown into prison and scheduled to be executed the next day. However, the following account exemplifies the requirements of a spiritual autobiography and demonstrates the active role that God plays in Marrant's life. In prison, he begins to pray in the native Cherokee language, supposedly "wonderfully influencing the people" nearby (24). To his surprise, his prayer converts the executioner who insists that "no one will harm [Marrant] until you have been to the king" (24). As a result, he is “taken away immediately” to meet the King where his explanation of the word of God and the Bible instantly converts the King's daughter (24). Just as Marrant experienced after listening to Reverend Whitefield, the young girl is overcome by a "physical weakness" and passes out sick, severely angering the Cherokee king who threatens to kill Marrant on the spot if his daughter is not treated immediately (27) . When Marrant prays for the girl, he explains that "the Lord appeared lovely and glorious" and delivered her from her ailments (27). As a result, “a great change [takes place] among the people; the house of the king [becomes] the house of God” and Marrant successfully converts the entire native village to Christianity. (28). As Marrant explains, he is thereafter “treated like a prince” and “the Lord made all [his] enemies great friends” (28-29). In this way, the reader is able to understand the significance of God's acting power in Marrant's life. It is also worth noting God's power to comfort men through their trials and tribulations. In Equiano's case, when Captain Henry Pascal sells him to another owner after promising his freedom, Equiano wonders if he has done something to cause the Lord to punish him. . At this moment, he believes that God is punishing him rather than the white man: “At this moment I waited for all my labors to end, I was plunged […] into a new slavery […] I cried very bitterly for some time: and I began to think that I must have done something to displease the Lord, who had punished me so severely" (59). He goes on to explain how he “felt that the Lord was able to fail him in everything,” just as the Lord helps his success and happiness (59). In doing so, Equiano, as well as John Marrant, “appropriate[ed] the word of God to his individual purposes” which “constituted a particularly bold form of self-authorization” (Andrew 1). These examples, along with many others in both Equiano's Interesting Narrative and the Lord's NarrativeJohn Marrant's Wonderful Dealings reveal what a powerful and guiding force God becomes in the lives of these men, further reiterating their belonging to the genre of spiritual autobiography. the most notable similarity between these two narratives is the choice of both Equiano and Marrant to adopt the racial “mask” of their captors. As Sisters of the Spirit explains, the Negro had traditionally been considered “a kind of Canaanite, a man without Logos, whose low social status was a punishment resulting from sin or a natural defect of the soul” (Andrew 1). In short, in the 17th and 18th centuries, blacks were considered subhuman and therefore incapable of achieving salvation. As a result, “the black spiritual autobiographer had to lay the necessary intellectual foundation by demonstrating that blacks were just as chosen by God for eternal salvation as whites” (Andrew 1). In order for Equiano and John Marrant to successfully demonstrate their potential for salvation, both men adopt the racial "mask" of their captors. In the case of John Marrant, the adoption of the Cherokee mask begins almost immediately after his encounter with the Indian hunter in the woods. Even before arriving in “a large Indian city, belonging to the Cherokee nation,” Marrant has already “acquired a more complete knowledge of the Indian language” (21). Interestingly, in that short time he learned enough of the language to pray completely in the native Cherokee language. After converting the entire village to Christianity, he immediately “assumes the dress of the country and [dresses] much like the king” (28). As Katherine Chiles points out, Marrant “taking on the customs of the country” indicates that he “dressed like the Cherokees and practiced their way of life (such as learning their language), and that he took on the constitution or appearance of the Cherokees. Cherokee Corps” (Equiano 28, Chiles 126). He has transformed himself into a native to such an extent that when he returns home his family does not recognize him: "[t]he singularity of my dress attracted everyone's eyes to me, yet no one knew me" (32). Indeed, Marrant's adoption of the Cherokee 'mask' is no less "disguising himself for a time than becoming something other than his former […] state of darkness" (Chiles 122). In short, Marrant sheds his former blackness as a way to escape the historical exception of blacks from Christianity and establish himself as a spiritual autobiographer. Just as Marrant adopts the mask of his native captors, Equiano adopts the ways and habits of his captors and their white counterparts. Initially convinced that whites are mean, savage, and cruel, Equiano comes to see whites as "magical" as the narrative progresses (140). He explains: Now I not only felt quite comfortable with these new compatriots, but I also appreciated their society and their ways. I no longer considered them as spirits, but as men superior to us; and therefore I had a stronger desire to resemble them; absorb their spirit and imitate their ways. I therefore embraced every opportunity for improvement; and every new thing I observed I retained in my memory (46). At this moment, Equiano decides to see himself more as a European than as a black African. He wants to imitate the people who held him captive for their apparent intelligence and good manners. As a result, Equiano strives to achieve this candor through his education, especially regarding religion. As a result, he surrounds himself with white, educated peers who aid him in understanding the Bible. Throughout the narrative, Equiano is eager to adopt the "white mask" of his superiors in order to be considered their equal on a social and spiritual level. Towards the conclusion of the story, Equiano reveals: «I am, 1998.