Mary Rowlandson, the daughter of a wealthy land holder in the Massachusetts Bay colony, was a victim of the King Philip war. She got married to Joseph Rowlandson at the age of 18, they had four children, one in which died in infancy. Shortly before the King Philip war ended a group of American Indians attacked the city of Lancaster and captured Mrs. Rowlandson along with her 3 children and a group of settlers. She wrote a narrative about what she had experienced during her captivity. This narrative was the only evidence of her being a writer. During the attack Rowlandson witnessed the murder of many of her friends and family as well as the death of her…
In the beginning of Mary Rowlandson’s narrative the Natives aren't so nice. The Natives had rebelled against the English Settlers, killing their men and capturing the women and children. Mary Rowlandson and her children are captured. Mary talks about how she is starved, and threatened to be punished if she doesn't do what she is asked, but the hardships that Mary endured were nothing compared to what the Native Americans endured during their enslavement by the English…
In exploring, the captivity of a puritan woman on the tenth of February 1675, by the Indians with great rage and numbers, Mary Rowlandson will portray many different views of the Indians in her recollected Narrative. Starting off with a savage view of ruthless Indian violence, and then after seeing the light of God in delivery of a Bible by an Indian warrior returning from the demise of a near puritan fight, Concluding with the friendly release of her as if she almost became one of the Indian people.…
Mary Rowlandson, a Puritan woman with a strong religious ethic was captured by the Indians or as she describes them “savages” during the King Phillips war. Mary was faced with severe amount of pain and suffering and was held hostage and stripped away from her basic necessities. Her children were also captured and separated from her, sold or bought by other Indians. Throughout her narrative “The Sovereignty and goodness of God” Mary dealt with unremarkable sufferings however, she remained sanguine about the difficulties she encountered, portraying her hardship and misfortunes as a test from God. After Mary survives the terrible conditions she feels blessed and very thankful that she has finally escaped those treacherous Indians and has returned…
On the tenth of February 1676, a literary masterpiece was started in the mind of a woman who endured traumatic experiences by being taken captive by hostile Indians. Mary Rowlandson made history by writing a testament of her unfortunate events that took place during her eighty three days of captivity. This literary piece is known as “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson”. This story was a personal recollection of Rowlandson’s life as a prisoner of war, taken captive by the Algonquians during King Phillip’s war in 1675 (Rosenmeier 255). This narrative was composed of great adventure, courage, a look into the lives of the Indian people, and most importantly religious devotion. When reading Rowlandson’s narrative, there may be different interpretations of why Rowlandson wrote about her captivity. Some may feel that it was written to reveal the lives of the Indian world…
Mary Rowlandson was an English woman born in 1636. Her parents were John and Joan White. They had moved to Massachusetts in the year of 1639. They were a Puritan family and strongly devoted to their religion. Mary Rowlandson was especially devoted. She went through what is called King Philip’s War. The Indians following Metacomet raided the homes of Plymouth. During this war about 5,000 Indians were killed and about 2,500 colonists were killed. Mary was moved and sold, along with many others including her children, by the Indians(213). The Indians beat, starved, tortured, dehydrated, and killed the colonists that they took. Some of the Indians were not abusive towards their “property” or slaves. Some were gentle and helped the colonists in their time of need.…
Bradstreet talks about topics such as her relationship with her husband and children and her struggles with religion. In her poem “A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment,” her husband was gone and coming back soon, but whenever she looked at her children, she was reminded of him. She wished he was there with her because he is like the sun, full of warmth and kindness, and her life revolved around him; without him she would be nothing. In her poem “Before the Birth of One of Her Children,” she believed that she was going to die during childbirth, but she wasn’t the only one, because many women back then had the same fear. Also, if she passed away, she was worried that her children were going to end up with a horrible stepmother, so she frequently asked God to protect her and her children. Although Bradstreet was a woman who expressed great amounts of faith, she was often left struggling when her feelings turned to resentment, confusion, and betrayal towards everyone around her. Often things went badly for her, and she doubted God because she thought he was punishing her for the wrong things she had done. Since she doubted God, she would pray and realize that everything happens for a reason. She wasn’t being punished; there was a lesson that needed to be learned, and when she struggled, she wouldn’t dwell on her sinfulness, she continued with living her life.…
Mary Rowlandson was born in Somersetshire England in 1637 but was later brought to the United States of America by her father, John White. He was a wealthy landholder in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. They settled in Lancaster where Mary met and married her husband Joseph Rowlandson. She served as a minister’s wife and mother of three children for approximately twenty years in the town. Her perfect life was soon taken from her by an attack on the town of Lancaster. The American Indians attacked the colonial settlements in order to get back their lands. This time period was known as the King Phillip’s War. Mary Rowlandson experienced eleven weeks of death in life. In her narrative, she used God as a means of hope and guidance. Life is uncertain and at any point it can be taken. Therefore,…
Captivity narratives are written by those captured by their enemies. They are considered enemies based on their beliefs and views to be uncivilized. The Mary Rowlandson’s Captivity narrative holds a strong importance in early American history. During this time these types of narratives are allowing us to take a look at our colonial America culture by someone who was there. There are apparent themes in this captivity narrative such as the uncertainty of life. While showing part of her life, through her Puritan beliefs and faith of God, by Rowlandson tells us her story. It expresses her point of views on the way she felt, and lived through a time in history.…
Indians and the escape that followed Mary Draper Ingles captivity. Mary Draper Ingles is the…
In the story “Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson” written by Mary Rowlandson herself, we read that she is taken captive by a group of Indians. Rowlandson was torn away from husband, children, and town. Everything she had ever known was taken away from her in an instant and she was taken to unfamiliar territory with her youngest daughter in tow. If being took captive wasn’t enough, later on we read that her daughter is dying. How does she deal with all of this? This is a question every reader is faced with. The answer is nothing but simple in the eyes of Rowlandson. Her strong Puritan beliefs helped her through every struggle she faced. Big or small. “… but God was with me in a wonderful manner, carrying me along, and bearing up my spirit, that it did not quite fail.”(Rowlandson 2nd Remove).…
Mary Rowlandson explains her experiences using a first person voice. She goes through her experiences both telling what happened and also explaining what was going on in her mind. The reading was depressing as Rowlandson describes what she and her family went through after being taken from their home. I feel as if Rowlandson may have exaggerated with how some things played out, or the optimist inside of me wants to believe that she did. It is hard to read some of the text, because it is saddening.…
Anne Bradstreet was the first woman in America who became a writer. She received an excellent education and wrote about politics, history, medicine and theology. This poem has caught my attention. In this poem, Anne Bradstreet tells the readers that her house was burnt. There is only material loss and she accepts losing everything with quite calm. She justifies herself using the figure of God. Only God is the one who can give and take everything you have, that is what Anne Bradstreet thinks. Bradstreet tries to reconcile her faith in an almighty God to the tragedy that concerns her.…
After arriving to the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and living there for a while, Anne realized that there really wasn’t such a thing as real “religious freedom”. She wished to talk about God…
The concerns of the colonial period portrayed through the works of the different writers deal with their religion and their health. In To My Dear Children, Anne Bradstreet writes about both of these issues for her children to read about when she is dead (452). She mentions her relationship with God, not only telling her children about her beliefs with in Christianity, but also her questions (Bradstreet 453-455). Bradstreet wanted her children to be able to take from her experiences and benefit from them to better their own lives. She wrote this piece knowing she was ill, she ends by telling her children she was sick and weak (Bradstreet 455). By her ending, I think she knew her time on earth was coming to an end.…