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Religion played a big part in early American literature, mostly due to the fact that religion was a big aspect in early American settlement. The more people who decide to emigrate from England to America, along with them came the ideas of which religions was the religion that all others should follow. Early American literature written is a key for more insights on the knowledge of what and how exactly religion influenced the English writer’s life. Mary Rowlandson, the writer of A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, writes how her life was influenced during her captivity of the Native Americans. June 20, 1675 began the first of many attacks on colonial settlements that lasted until August 12, 1676. These series …show more content…
of attacks became known as “King Philip’s War” (126), and was the last effort made by the Natives to drive out the English settlers. The literature written by Rowlandson captures her experience of being held captive and living in harsh conditions during “King Philip’s War,” which symbolizes a main theme, life is not guaranteed. Mary Rowlandson lived and experienced many horrendous incidents during her captivity, and through her writing readers find just how vicious the Native Americans can be compared to what is learned in traditional school, where the Natives were always the ones being treated bad. Through Rowlandson’s writings, even after watching her family and loved ones being brutally shot and killed, Rowlandson ultimately is grateful for the experience and does not portray her captors in a terrible demeanor. February 10, 1675 marks the day that Rowlandson’s life was flipped upside down. Native Americans arrived in Lancaster, burning homes, injuring and killing people without a second thought (127). For anyone, this would have been a traumatizing. Rowlandson’s writing begins portraying her views of the Native Americans as if they were some type of animal, rather than human. Rowlandson writes, “I had often before this said that if the Indians should come, I should choose rather to be killed by them than taken alive, but when it came to the trial my mind changed; their glittering weapons so daunted my spirit, that I chose rather to go along with hose (as I may say) ravenous beasts, than that moment to end my days....” (130). Her referring to the Indians as “ravenous beasts” and also “barbarous creatures” (130) can be seen as a derogatory term, but was Rowlandson referring in that instance to the Natives as “barbarous creatures” and “ravenous beasts” really about the way the treated her? Or was it more about their [the Native American’s] life style? On page 130, Rowlandson writes “This was the was dolefulest night that ever my eyes saw. Oh the roaring, and singing and dancing, and yelling of those black creatures in the night, which made the place a lively resemblance of hell. And as miserable was the waste that was there made of horses, cattle, sheep, swine, calves, lambs, roasting pigs, and fowl (which they had plundered in the town), some roasting, some lying and burning, and some boiling to feed our merciless enemies,” which shows that maybe her aliases for the Natives were only projecting the behavior of the Indians, and did not actually have anything to do with her having a hatred for them and want to use a name that appeared malicious. In “The Second Remove,” it becomes more apparent Rowlandson’s relationship with God. During the instance in which she fell of the back of a horse with her wounded child (131), she writes, “But the Lord renewed my strength still, and carried me along, that I might see more of his power; yea, so much that I could never have thought of, had I not experienced it” (131). Digging deeper into what Rowlandson may mean when she writes this, one may decide to look back on how she views the Indians. “So much that I could never have thought of, had I not experienced it” (131) is a particular part of the quote carries much meaning. If “King Philip’s War” was not occurring, the Native Americans would not have came to her home in Lancaster, which would not bring her to her experience with the Lord’s power and mercy; in a way, it is because of the Native Americans that Rowlandson had this experience, though it is not one that most would want to or even begin to think about experiencing. Through the many removes, Rowlandson found herself referencing the Bible and looking to the Lord for comfort, for a reason to keep going.
Rowlandson writes, “The night before the letter came from the council, I could not rest, I was so full of fears and troubles, God many times leaving us most in the dark, when deliverance is nearest. Yea, at this time I could not rest night nor day” (137), Rowlandson remembers that it is only because of God she is in the predicament that she is and has been in, and now she is free to go home – no longer to be held captive. Now, if these Native Americans were such “barbarous creatures” and “ravenous beasts,” would Rowlandson even have the chance to go home? Rowlandson as well as the other captives were not treated top notch, they were not given enough food to fill their bellies, or enough water to keep the thirst away, no, but Mary was kept alive; however, Rowlandson took something bigger from the experience, she took away a closer relationship with God. Rowlandson writes, “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, and they have been gainers thereby, “ and continues to go on and say “… we must rely on God himself, and our whole dependence must be upon him” (143), showing that her life was lying in no other than God’s
hands. In conclusion, looking within the deeper meanings of Rowlandson’s writing, Rowlandson can only hate her captors’ actions and the treatment she received from them; she cannot hate her captors for who they are. Rowlandson belief in God and her reliance on the Bible for comfort would be a complete opposite of believing God put her through her captivity for a reason if she decided to hate her captors as people. Rowlandson’s writings carried a simple theme that life is not promised, as everyday she woke and faced a new struggle; however, she came out and lived happily and reunited with her family. The experience had to be no other than mortifying, but as big of a part as religion played in Rowlandson’s life, being that she was the wife of a minister, hatred toward the Natives - who opened her eyes and helped bring her relationship with God at its peek - as people themselves would only be nonsensical.
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.
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 was captured from her home in Lancaster, Massachusetts by Wampanoag Indians during King Phillip’s War. She was held captive for several months. When she was released she penned her story, A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson. During much of her story she refers to the Indians as savage beasts and heathens but at times seems admire them and appreciate their treatment of her. Mary Rowlandson has a varying view of her Indian captors because she experienced their culture and realized it was not that different from Puritan culture.
In conclusion to all these articles, Mary Rowlandson and John Smith set the perception for Native Americans due to their Captivity Narratives. Puritans already had an evil view of Indians and these stories adding to their belief of how they were in cahoots with the Devil.
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.
Religion was the foundation of the early Colonial American Puritan writings. Many of the early settlements were comprised of men and women who fled Europe in the face of persecution to come to a new land and worship according to their own will. Their beliefs were stalwartly rooted in the fact that God should be involved with all facets of their lives and constantly worshiped. These Puritans writings focused on their religious foundations related to their exodus from Europe and religions role in their life on the new continent. Their literature helped to proselytize the message of God and focused on hard work and strict adherence to religious principles, thus avoiding eternal damnation. These main themes are evident in the writings of Jonathan Edwards, Cotton Mathers, and John Winthrop. This paper will explore the writings of these three men and how their religious views shaped their literary works, styles, and their historical and political views.
Rowlandson, Mary “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.” The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Vol. A. Ed. Nina Baym. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2012. 257-88. Print.
“A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson” by Mary Rowlandson is a short history about her personal experience in captivity among the Wampanoag Indian tribe. On the one hand, Mary Rowlandson endures many hardships and derogatory encounters. However, she manages to show her superior status to everyone around her. She clearly shows how her time spent under captivity frequently correlates with the lessons taught in the Bible. Even though, the colonists possibly murdered their chief, overtook their land, and tried to starve the Native Americans by burning down their corn, which was their main source of food, she displays them as demonizing savages carrying out the devil's plan. There are many struggles shown during the story, both physical and emotional, but her greatest struggle is her ability to prove the satanic nature of the Indians without diminishing her reputation, but, instead, elevating herself into a martyr-like figure. From beginning to end, Mrs. Rowlandson strives to display that she is an immaculate Puritan, that within the Indian tribe and the Puritan community she has superiority, and that the Indians are barbaric creatures possessing satanic dangers.
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...
Interestingly although she feared and reviled the Indians she states that not one of them offered the least abuse of unchastity to her. Her captors never sexually molested or violated her. Rowlandson learned to adapt and strove to make it thought her captivity alive. She learned how to gather food for herself. Tolerate the ways of the Indians, and make clothes for the tribe. She even decided to stay with the Indians when given the chance to escape. “Rowlandson refused them choosing to stay put and let God choose when she was fully redeemed and ready to be released”
Rowlandson seems to again be on the savage levels of the Indians by portraying unchristian like values. Mary writes, “Being very hungry I had quickly eat up mine, but the Child could not bite it, but lay sucking, gnawing, chewing, then I took it of the Child, and eat it my self, and savoury it was to my taste” (Rowlandson 87). By letting the child go without food Mary shows unchristian like qualities and in turn becomes more like the Indians who captured her. Towards the end of her journey, Mary eventually begins to trade with the Indians. This has a profound effect on Rowland’s views of the Indians and their way of life. Mary’s, “entry into exchange with her captors lifts her out of the abjection of being on the dole, and thus creates a measure of equality between herself and the captors, with whom she can now set terms, rather than only accept” (Loughead
In her account, A Narrative of the Captivity and Restauration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, Rowlandson
Up until the early 17th century, American literature was chiefly about politics, religion, and recorded events. These writings were very dry and lacked insight into the everyday lives of the authors. To put into writing any individual spiritual reflections that strayed away from the religion of the colony could be dangerous at that time; possibly resulting in banishment from the colony or worse. Likewise, any writing that did not serve at least one of the purposes listed above was considered to be a waste of time that would be better spent praising God. Anne Bradstreet defied the rules of her time by writing about whatever she wanted including personal thoughts, reflections, emotions, and events. Bradstreet was the first to write about personal matters, which is her greatest literary contribution in early American literature.