Oronooko and the Myth of the Noble Savage

Oronooko and the myth of the noble savage

The idea of the noble savage first appeared in the 17th Century in Captain James Cook’s description of the indigenous tribal societies of the New World, and became popular with John Locke and Rousseau. The term noble savage generally refers to the idea that human beings are naturally born good and it is society that corrupts them. As individuals, noble savages are usually described in literature and philosophy as being connected with nature and isolated from the European civilized society, meaning that since they were not raised in the European society, they were not corrupted: they are still noble, virtuous and without sin. Although Aphra Behn does not use the term noble savage itself in Oronooko, she clearly addresses the idea in the way she describes the natives in the story and portrays Oronooko as the main character and hero. Since Aphra Behn was a royalist and most themes addressed by royalists in the 17the Century in their literary work were used to instruct or argue for monarchy and obedience, it is very possible to affirm that Oronooko had the same role. So, in this close reading of Oronooko: The Royal Slave I argue that Behn uses the idea of the noble savage to present the order of the monarch and monarchy as the natural type of government.

Behn first introduces the idea of the noble savage in the novella with the description of the natives. Instead of describing them as uncivilized savages, as expected in a Eurocentric colonial point of view, she describes the natives as innocent, without sin or malice, and even compares them with Adam and Eve before the fall: “They are extreme modest and bashful, very shy, and nice of being touched. And though they are all thus naked, if one lives forever among them, there is not to be seen an indecent action, or glance: and being continually used to see one another so unadorned, so like our first parents before the fall” (Behn, 11). For Behn, they live in a peaceful and...