Felix Fabri begins his description of his time at The Port of Joppa with its extensive historical, mythical, and religious significance. He details the Greek tale of Andromeda, her romantic entanglement with Perseus, and the sea monster he saves her from before he swipes her off to Persia. He also explains Joppa’s ties to Biblical figures and affairs, noting that Noah’s son Japhet and Job are associated with the land. Overall, Fabri’s description of the Port of Joppa serves to explain its poor condition. Because of its extensive history of hosting violent, destructive events, the port remains in ruin upon Felix Fabri’s arrival.
Throughout the rest of this section, Felix Fabri details the process of retrieving an “ass-driver” for travel, which is very similar to that of catching a cab in a busy city, besides the grabbing of the passenger that takes place in Fabri’s case. Felix Fabri discusses his good fortune in interaction with Saracens and their workers, saying that he always received favored treatment from all the people he encountered during his time in Joppa.
Despite this section of his account being one of the most uninteresting and uneventful, Felix Fabri’s intentions are clear. He wants his readers to understand his exceptionalism, which he believes is God-provided. Such exceptionalism is a clear contrast to that which he experienced in The Holy Land, where he was extorted, robbed, and uncomfortably settled.
Again, Felix Fabri presents an interaction he has with a “black” person, but this time he is more gracious about his description of him, as he is reassured by Father Guardian that the moor is just doing his job when he grabs Felix Fabri to lead him to an ass. Fabri says that the black man’s face “had a cruel look,” but he goes on to learn the man’s name, and he learns that the man is enslaved by another individual. Felix Fabri and Cassa grow fond of one another, so much so that when they meet again they grab one another to embrace. Felix Fabri’s treatment of this particular black person strongly contrasts that which he provided for the Ethiopians in The Holy Land. Granted, the Ethiopian burglars invaded his private space in hopes of stealing his property, but to see that Fabri’s recount of the black moor is not dehumanizing comes as a surprise.
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