Equiano begins his first-person narrative by including several letters that attest to both the veracity of his text and his good character. He then proceeds to his narrative.
He was born in the Eboe province of Africa, and provides cultural detail on those people. While young children, he and his sister were seized by kidnappers and sold to slave traders. After being brought across Africa to the coast, he was sent to the West Indies via the horrific Middle Passage.
He was purchased quickly enough by Michael Henry Pascal, a lieutenant in the Royal Navy. Pascal had intended him as a gift for friends in London, but instead kept Equiano as an aid towards his naval endeavors during the Seven Years’ War. During this time, Equiano heard about the Christian God and started learning to read and write. Through his ability at sea, he became indispensable to Pascal and became accustomed to his situation.
"Strewn feathers" are a metaphor for chaos. It can also be a bit of a paradox because feathers are lightweight, and chaos is a serious and heavy matter.
"Sang the heart upon its mantel" in the last stanza is personification.
"See", again in the last stanza, is a homophone, or a word whose pronunciation has double meaning. The poet could mean see as is sight, but also implying sea like the body of water.
The answer is a free-verse poem.
