John Gabriel Stedman - Stedman's Narrative

Stedman's Narrative

The Narrative of a Five Years Expedition against the Revolted Negroes of Surinam is a firsthand account of the many experiences encountered by John Gabriel Stedman while living in Surinam from the year 1772 through 1777. Stedman vividly describes the landscapes of Surinam, paying great attention to detail. His observations of life in the colony encompass the different cultures that comprise the melting pot that developed there: Dutch, Scottish, native, African, Spanish, Portuguese, and French. Though the colony and the surrounding forests were filled with treachery and violence, in his Narrative Stedman takes time to describe the ordinary life and the happiness of certain situations in the colony.

The first pages of the Narrative record Stedman's voyage to Surinam. He spends his days reading on deck, attempting to avoid those sick from the turbulent sea. Upon his arrival in Surinam, Stedman and the troops are warmly greeted by residents of the fortress Amsterdam, along the Surinam River. Here, Stedman gives his first description of the sweet, perfumed smells and the beautiful landscape of Surinam.

Stedman contrasts the beauty and sweetness of the colony with his first taste of the violence and cruelty endemic there. On shore is a nearly naked slave woman, chained to an iron weight. The woman received 200 lashes and carried the weight for a month as a result of her inability to fulfill a task to which she was assigned. Stedman observes her suffering with disbelief and fascination.

Stedman spends the night at an acquaintance's residence, where by his account a middle-aged female slave makes a sexual advance toward him. Stedman firmly declines, claiming how appalling the situation was. Only a few days later, Stedman is offered a young girl to be his "wife" for the duration of his stay in the colony. Though he denies the offer, Stedman explains that these "wives" were commonplace in Surinam and acted as a personal attendants and lovers to single European gentlemen.

A short time after his arrival in Surinam, Stedman engages in the first of several skirmishes with the rebelling Maroons. Captives are taken on both fronts after the Maroons ravage plantations for revenge and supplies. The plantation owners execute eleven captives, which begins a series of violent confrontations between the two sides. A large number of slaves begin rebelling in hopes of gaining the same accommodations as the Maroons.

Stedman soon returns to camp where he is introduced to a mulatto slave girl by the name of Joanna. He is immediately intrigued by her appearance and demeanor. He finds her beautiful, and he decides that he should try to buy her and provide her with a European education. However, he falls ill soon after their introduction. Joanna nurses Stedman back to health, resulting in his growing affections toward her.

While Stedman regains his health, conditions in Surinam decline. Stedman witnesses a number of executions and brutalities against both rebelling and complacent slaves. Stedman describes the horrors and his disgust with the punishments. A fellow soldier tells Stedman of one case in which a rebel was hung by his ribs for two days as punishment for his crimes. It was common practice for the Europeans of the colony to cut off the noses of their slaves, burn them alive, and whip them to death with impunity. Some slaves were known to swallow their tongues or eat dirt in an effort to commit suicide to escape.

Stedman's first commanding mission is to row along the rivers of Surinam in search of rebel forces. Unfortunately, many of his troops become ill. Stedman asks one of the slaves what he should do in order to remain healthy. The slave suggests that Stedman should swim in the river each day and walk barefoot while aboard the boat to toughen his feet. Despite his best efforts, Stedman falls ill, but he is forced to continue with his duties after word spreads that the rebels are close. The nearest encampment, Devil's Harwar, is said to be suffering heavy casualties from widespread pestilence, probably malaria and typhus.

Over the course of his Narrative, Stedman relays several stories regarding the wretched state of the slaves and the horrors to which they are subjected. In one story, involving a group sailing by boat, an enslaved mother was ordered by her mistress to hand over her crying baby. The mistress then threw the baby into the river, drowning it. The mother jumped into the river after her baby, whose body was recovered by fellow slaves. The mother later received 200 lashes for her defiant behavior. In another story, a small boy shoots himself in the head to escape flogging. In yet another, a man is completely broken on the rack and left for days to suffer until he died.

At this time, Stedman's life in Surinam is improving, and Joanna gives birth to their child, Johnny. But this brief stint of domestic happiness is disrupted when the Scots Brigade is recalled to Holland. Aware of his imminent departure, Stedman attempts to enjoy what little time he has left by spending it with Joanna and Johnny at home. However, new insurrections erupt and Stedman is ordered to remain in Surinam.

Stedman was intrigued by Maroon culture. Though certain aspects are foreign and unsettling, such as the cutting of slits into the cheeks and the sharpening of teeth, Stedman admires and praises the culture as a whole. He writes that Africans are the truest friends one could hope for, generally good natured, both sexes showing great courage and heroism, often in the face of extreme cruelty and mutilation.

Stedman's last expedition in Surinam consists of marching his men in search of rebel forces. To his dismay, the only rebel found is an old man who had been left behind. The troops march to the nearest encampment for a few weeks' rest, and Stedman accompanies Colonel Fourgeoud to the capital of Paramaribo, where Stedman finds a new residence. There he encounters a female slave about to be flogged for insubordination. This event inspires Stedman to have his son emancipated. Stedman attempts to have Johnny baptized but is turned away by the priests, who claim that because of his imminent return to Holland. he will not be in Johnny's life enough to ensure his proper Christian education. Stedman says farewell to Joanna, Johnny, and a number of close friends, and laments that he must leave his wife and child. He asks Joanna to accompany him back to Europe, but she declines because she is still a slave.

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