The narrator makes a point to characterize the love affair between Oroonoko and Imoinda as inherently European. Though he himself has impressed the narrator, he is not considered to be indicative of his race, and because of his race he is patronized by being made to seem even more impressive despite his lineage.

The idea of the noble savage relates directly to Oroonoko in that he is considered to be above his race he is an exception to the race from which he comes, in the eyes of the narrator.

Instead of what the narrator says about Oroonoko, the most telling indication of the narrator’s opinions and point of view is the way in which the main character is described. When describing Oroonoko, the narrator seems almost surprised that Oroonoko as a person could exist, coming from a race that is not white. Even though the innocence of the Natives could be seen in a positive light, the tone of the description is patronizing. The British narrator claims to live “in perfect tranquility, and good understanding” with the Natives, yet there is clearly a hierarchy between them, and the narrator describes the Natives in such a way that makes them seem inferior, unintelligent, and simplistic (1110). The narrator does seem to be complimenting the Natives with which the British co-inhabit Surinam, but at the same time they are belittling them, relegating them almost to the state of another, less evolved species. While this story does attempt to elevate the tale of Oroonoko, making him appear more than just the savage most audiences would initially see him as, it still ends up putting down African society in the process. Oroonoko’s handsomeness and good character is described by comparing him to Western society, essentially saying that he’s not only handsome for an African – he’s even more handsome than CIVILIZED men. There is a definite separation between Africans and Westerners in these descriptions, with Westerners being described as the obvious superior of the two. He’s often described as more perfect and beautiful than the whole of his race, and this is usually done by comparing him to that of a Westerner, with such descriptions as “the most illustrious courts could not have produced a braver man….his face was not of that brown, rusty black which most of that nation are, but a perfect ebony…his nose was rising and Roman, instead of African and flat” (1111). The Africans are characterized indirectly through the descriptions of Oroonoko himself.

Oroonoko text