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Continuous Faith in God
Throughout the Colonialist period until the Romantic period, faith in God was never lost. Pieces like Mary Rowlandson’s “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration,” Thomas Paine’s “Age of Reason,” and Frederick Douglass’ “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” all show their continuous faith in God through this rough patch in their lives. In each of these stories, these people are all different; from being held in captivity, to having the right to their own religion, and to having the right of being human/man. Although these people have different stories, each of their stories ties into faith. Stobaugh says, “I finally found that change of heart which comes by casting all one’s care upon God, and by having faith
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in Jesus Christ, as the Redeemer, Friend, and Savior of those who diligently seek him. After this, I saw the world in a new light” (n. pag). Without this assurance that God is going to protect them and continue to watch over them, surviving would have been almost impossible. Throughout this time period, the idea of not losing faith is common in these works of literature. Mary Rowlandson’s “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration,” serves as a testimony.
It starts off with the attack from the Indians. She describes these Indians as “murderous wretches” (257) and “ravenous beasts” (259). Concluding her introduction, she says how she would “rather to be killed by them than taken alive, but when it came to the trail [her] mind changed” (259). Rowlandson values her life and trusts God to protect her through her captivity. Later into the story, Rowlandson talks about how the Indians didn’t value the Bible and it is hard to understand why it is so important to the Puritans. She then goes on to say that God gave her the Bible through this nasty Indian “I cannot but take notice of the wonderful mercy of God to me in those afflictions, in sending me a bible” (263). As the story goes on, Rowlandson points out God made Native Americans so strong so that Puritans could grow through this tragedy, “the Lord feeds and nourishes them up to be a scourge to the whole land” (283). No matter what happened, Rowlandson keeps her faith in God. She ends with “Yet I see, when God calls a person to anything, and through never so many difficulties, yet He is fully able to carry them through and make them see,” (288) meaning that God puts us through situations that we may not think we can handle, but He knows we can. As Bob Marley says, “You never know how strong you are until being strong is your only choice.” Rowlandson’s only choice was to stay completely …show more content…
focused on God and trust Him with everything. This seen in The Second Remove, “But the Lord renewed my strength, and carried me along, that I might see more of His power” (260). That is the only thing that kept her alive. Thomas Paine’s “The Age of Reason,” takes a different turn in religion than Rowlandson does.
Paine believes that people have the freedom to believe in what they choose, he says “All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian, or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit” (654). Paine means that just like human inventions, we have the option to use it; like religion, we have the choice to decide what we believe in. Paine believes in what he chooses, but just because he believes in something different than others, he won’t let that stop him from keeping his happiness. He says, “I do not mean by this declaration to condemn those who believe otherwise; they have the same right to their belief as I have to mine” (654). When he says this, he is referencing mental fidelity meaning that we won’t be happy, if we are pretending. Paine talks about Deism in that it is “a theological view that affirms the existence of God but denies He has any supernatural or miraculous dealings with the universe” (n. pag.). Paine says “I believe in one God, and no more; and I hope for happiness beyond this life,” (653) meaning that even though some believe in one God, he only has one God and that is who he will be with after death where he hopes to find happiness outside of this world. Paine shows that even in this century and different beliefs in religion, that it should be us who have the right to
choose what we believe in. Frederick Douglass’ “What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July,” talks about religion in the way that God couldn’t answer the questions that slaves had pertaining to why this holiday wasn’t a true holiday for them, but a reminder of the past. Douglass says, “The sunlight that brought life and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. This Fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn” (1251). This holiday is a reminder of the rights African Americans lose and the many years of suffering they endured during this time. Throughout this piece, Douglass questions why it is okay to have treated African Americans the way they did and compared them to animals. He says “When the dogs in your streets, when the fowls of the air, when the cattle on your hills, when the fish of the sea, and the reptiles that crawl, shall be unable to distinguish the slave form a brute, then will I argue with you that slave is a man!” (1253) Here he argues that African Americans are human too and animals are free of laws so why should African Americans have laws. Douglass goes on to use pathos by saying “in the name of the constitution and the bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon” (1252), that slavery is not right and Americans should be ashamed of themselves for what they have done to African Americans. This shame goes further into African Americans having to prove that they are human, “confessing and worshiping the Christian’s God, and looking hopefully for life and immortality beyond the grave, -- we are called upon to prove that we are men!” (1253). African Americans have to prove that they are human, they should be treated equally without having to earn their equality and with that, and God must be a part of this. Continuous faith in God is shown to be a survival mechanism used in this time period. The Colonialist, the Enlightenment, and The Romanticist period each prove that with faith in God, anything is possible. Regardless of race or equality, we all have one common thing, and that is the belief in God. God has shown that He will always protect those who believe in Him and guide them through the rough times, as long as the faith continues.
On February 10, 1675, Mary Rowland was captured in Lancaster, Massachusetts. While being held captive, she narrated her experiences and tried to affirm her Puritan beliefs throughout her survival of being in captivity. She’d rather go with the “ravenous Beasts” than die because she wanted to “declare” of what was happening to her throughout her journey (70). Mary Rowlandson believed God was omniscient, forgiving, and omnipotent and it shaped her perception of the world in an affirmative way throughout all the chaos and suffering.
Douglass moves to attack the Christian beliefs of the American people, showing the great discrepancies between the ideals held in the Christian faith and the ideals held by slaveowners. Christians avoidance of abolishing slavery, yet worshipping a loving and peaceful God, may be the worse crime of them all. Douglass explains the hypocrisy of the American people by choosing to continue slavery while claiming the benevolent principles embedded in the Bible. At the moment he gives this speech, “they are thanking God for the enjoyment of civil and religious liberty, yet they are utterly silent in respect to a law which robs religion of its chief significance” (Douglass 12). The American people acknowledge and thank God for their freedoms, yet purposefully
...e. She spent all day walking and carrying articles while the Indians rode horse back. Rowlandson was forced to weave for the Indians and give her clothing up for the comfort of the Indians. My head also was so light, that I usually reeled as I went, but I hope all those wearisome steps that I have taken are but a forwarding of me to the Heavenly rest (Rowlandson p. 43). Near the end of her eleven weeks of captivity Rowlandson wanted nothing more but to give up and let the Lord take her away. The Indians stood laughing to see me staggering along; but in my distress the Lord gave me experience of the truth and goodness of that promise (Rowlandson p. 51). Finally, after eleven long weeks of death, pain and suffering, the Indians gave heart. They leaded her near Boston where she would find some English men that helped reunites her husband to his long lost wife.
Although John Smith, Mary Rowlandson and Jonathan Edwards are very different writers we can find a few similarities in their quotes we are learning. Quoting Seneca and other Latin authors, he presents his narrative with clear political intentions using third person and the first person in other occasions to make himself look as a hero who has managed to escape from captivity and death in three different occasions and has conquered exotic lands. On the contrary, Mary Rowlandson quotes Biblical passages, as she is a Puritan jeremiad with a strong religious background. The same happens with Jonathan whose religious thoughts are his main subject. Both Rowlandson and Edwards believe that everything is God’s will. Mary focuses her narrative on the violence of the attack, how she survives from captivity and she feels the need to write a book to teach a moral lesson to the congregation. However,
In “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson,” Mary Rowlandson, a Puritan mother from Lancaster, Massachusetts, recounts the invasion of her town by Indians in 1676 during “King Philip’s War,” when the Indians attempted to regain their tribal lands. She describes the period of time where she is held under captivity by the Indians, and the dire circumstances under which she lives. During these terrible weeks, Mary Rowlandson deals with the death of her youngest child, the absence of her Christian family and friends, the terrible conditions that she must survive, and her struggle to maintain her faith in God. She also learns how to cope with the Indians amongst whom she lives, which causes her attitude towards them to undergo several changes. At first, she is utterly appalled by their lifestyle and actions, but as time passes she grows dependent upon them, and by the end of her captivity, she almost admires their ability to survive the harshest times with a very minimal amount of possessions and resources. Despite her growing awe of the Indian lifestyle, her attitude towards them always maintains a view that they are the “enemy.”
Mary Rowlandson and Olaudah Equiano both had many obstacles in a certain period of life. From the different narratives, trials and tribulations were brought upon both. Taken from the life of which accustomed to and put in sometimes very harsh conditions had an antagonistic effect. Despite it all, Rowlandson and Equiano were able to get through by keep faith in God, the word of the bible, and spiritualism in itself. After all of the trials and tribulations Rowlandson and Equiano were able to escape and look back on all the things they went through. Mary Rowlandson and Olaudah Equiano can be compared and contrasted by family life, conditions while captured, and moment of rescue.
I completely agree with Paine in that everyone is entitled to his own opinion. Freedom of speech, which includes an opinion, is of course, in America’s Bill of Rights. Every American is given the freedom of speech. God did not design us to be all exactly alike. Being said, He wants one to have his own individual opinion. He does not want us to be like robots and all follow the sa...
Rowlandson watches as her family members are killed and kidnapped by Indians. At the beginning of her story she says she used to think she would rather be killed than taken captive by Indians, but when the time comes, she changes her mind and is taken by the “ravenous beasts,” (238). Rowlandson has never been around Indians. She knows only what she has been told about Indians, which is to fear and hate them, because they are savages. She feels she is being taken from civilization into the wilderness.
God displays his protective powers in various ways. She is shown to be in despair numerous times. So many things happen that keep chipping away at her spirit. The Indians come and ransack the town, basically burning it to the ground. She is separated from all of her children except for one and even in that moment, her daughter dies in her arms after being wounded by a gunshot. Rowlandson herself is injured and is forced to keep travelling despite her conditions. Chaos seems to surround her at every angle. She is initially given a very miniscule amount of water to sustain her on the trip along with some nuts and crumbs. Rowlandson states that “… still the Lord still upheld me...” and also that “he hurt me one hand, and proceeded to heal me with the other”. She believes that due to her people being unfaithful, the Lord is now punishing them so that they can repent. But her being puritan and a chosen one, instead of being killed off, she is preserved and is allowed to get back in God’s good standing. At one point she even thinks of attempting suicide and ending all the misery but she states that thanks to God, she came back her senses and reason to know that she couldn’t go through with such an act. God was using the Indians as agents to punish the Puritans and in doing so, whenever the opportunity for freedom arrived and for some reason the opportunity was not seen
...ve Indians. From the copious use of examples in Winthrop's work, and the concise detail in Rowlandson's narrative, one can imbibe such Puritans values as the mercy of God, place in society, and community. Together, these three elements create a foundation for Puritan thought and lifestyle in the New World. Though A Model of Christian Charity is rather prescriptive in its discussion of these values, Rowlandson's captivity narrative can certainly be categorized as descriptive; this pious young woman serves as a living example of Winthrop's "laws," in that she lives the life of a true Puritan. Therefore, both 17th century works are extremely interrelated; in order to create Winthrop's model community, one must have faith and closely follow Puritan ideals, as Rowlandson has effectively done in her A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.
The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson is a personal account, written by Mary Rowlandson in 1682, of what life in captivity was like. Her narrative of her captivity by Indians became popular in both American and English literature. Mary Rowlandson basically lost everything by an Indian attack on her town Lancaster, Massachusetts in 1675; where she is then held prisoner and spends eleven weeks with the Wampanoag Indians as they travel to safety. What made this piece so popular in both England and America was not only because of the great narrative skill used be Mary Rowlandson, but also the intriguing personality shown by the complicated character who has a struggle in recognizing her identity. The reoccurring idea of food and the word remove, used as metaphors throughout the narrative, could be observed to lead to Mary Rowlandson’s repression of anger, depression, and realization of change throughout her journey and more so at the end of it.
Mary Rowlandson was a pretentious, bold and pious character. Her narrative did not make me feel sorry for her at all, which is strange since she really did go through a lot. During the war, the Narragansett Indians attacked Lancaster Massachusetts, and burned and pillaged the whole village. During the siege Mary and her six year old child were shot, she watched her sister and most of her village either burn or get shot. She was kept as a captive, along with her three children and taken with the Narragansett’s on their long retreat. The exposition of the story is set immediately. The reader is perfectly aware of Missus Rowlandson’s status and religious beliefs. She constantly refers to the Narragansetts in an incredibly condescending way, to the point that you know that she does not even consider them human. She paints them as purely evil pe...
In this final research analysis, I will be doing a comparison between the “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” and the “Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson” to show how both Douglass and Rowlandson use a great deal of person strength and faith in God to endure their life and ultimately gain their freedom.
Because of their Puritanical beliefs, it is no surprise that the major theme that runs throughout Mary Rowlandson and Jonathan Edwards’s writings is religion. This aspect of religion is apparent in not only the constant mentions about God himself, but also in the heavy use of biblical scriptures. In their respective writings, Rowlandson and Edwards utilize scripture, but for different purposes; one uses it to convey that good and bad events happen solely because of God’s will, and the other uses it, in one instance, to illustrate how it brought him closer to God, and, in another instance, to justify his harsh claims about God’s powerful wrath.
In Smith’s narrative he gives thanks and credit to God for his escape of death each time it occurs. Occasionally, specs of scripture from the Bible would be referenced, but the majority of John mentioning of God is done with a stroke of ambiguity. Mary was the wife to a minister therefore her understanding of God was deeply rooted with in scripture. Rowlandson heavily saturates her narrative with verses from the Bible, and is extremely vulnerable with her own struggles while she was with the Indians. This gives the reader a clear picture of how important her faith is. Contrary to Smith’s account Rowlandson leans upon her knowledge of the Bible and her relationship with God through more than just her victories. In some of her darkest moments while being held prisoner she would quote scripture in order to overcome adversity. The core difference between these two narratives in terms of religious references is the motive behind them. Smith’s motive was to simply do his duty by mentioning God because it was politically correct to say while Rowlandson was writing from a place in her heart. Her motive has no evidence of political ties.