Final answer:
Olaudah Equiano's narrative exposes the irony of Europeans labeling Africans as savages while they themselves engaged in savage behavior through the brutal slave trade. It challenges primitivist views by revealing that Africans had complex societies and that European slave traders dehumanized Africans to justify enslavement.
Step-by-step explanation:
The excerpt from "The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano" illustrates the irony of the European view of Africans as savages by describing the extreme brutality and dehumanization African slaves faced at the hands of Europeans. Equiano's narrative reveals that, contrary to the European claim of civilizing 'savages,' it was the Europeans who acted with unrestrained cruelty in the slave trade. Olaudah Equiano himself was a victim of this cruel system, having been kidnapped and sold into slavery, only to later become a formidable advocate against the slave trade.
Equiano's account mentions that slavery existed in Africa prior to European intervention, but it was usually not characterized by the same inhumanity. Slavery in Africa varied greatly from the chattel slavery introduced by Europeans, which was based on a belief in racial inferiority and involved barbaric treatment and lifelong servitude. This contrast underlines the hypocrisy of the European presumption of their own civilization's inherent superiority and points to the harsh reality that the Europeans were the ones displaying 'savage' behavior towards Africans.
European slave traders deceptively labeled Africans as less than human to justify their exploitation. They would steal and kidnap people to enforce slavery, causing immense suffering as vividly described by Equiano. The Interesting Narrative challenges the primitivist ideas of the time, showing that Africans had their own sophisticated societies and cultural practices, such as the body marks among the Ibo, which indicated belonging and status.