Roger Williams' a Key Into the Language of America
Roger Williams' A Key Into the Language of America
During American colonial times, the native peoples of the new world clashed often with the English settlers who encroached upon their lifestyle. Many horror stories and clichés arose about the natives from the settlers. As one might read in Mary Rowlandson’s Narrative, often these disputes would turn to violence. To maintain the process of the extermination of the natives alongside Christian moral beliefs, one of the main tenets of colonial life was the belief that the natives were “savages”; that they were morally and mentally inferior to the English that settled there. As is the case with many societies, certain voices of dissent began to spin. These voices questioned the assertions of the English about the natives. They refused to accept the seemingly immoral acts committed by both sides as an inevitable process. And they wished to learn more. Among these voices rose that of Roger Williams.
In his work A Key into the Language of America, Williams learned the language of the natives and assembled his findings into a ...
... middle of paper ...
... multiple-speaker device. Three voices collating different perspectives create a persuasive narrative on several levels of debate. In fact, the author’s use of this device created a sense of layering that could not otherwise have been achieved. Every point the Williams made, for example received justification on multiple levels for multiple purposes. Such is the nature of this device. Williams applied it for an emotional and logical duet of persuasion, but the implication of these factors creates a multiplication of compulsion for the
During American colonial times, the native peoples of the new world clashed often with the English settlers who encroached upon their lifestyle. Many horror stories and clichés arose about the natives from the settlers. As one might read in Mary Rowlandson’s Narrative, often these disputes would turn to violence. To maintain the process of the extermination of the natives alongside Christian moral beliefs, one of the main tenets of colonial life was the belief that the natives were “savages”; that they were morally and mentally inferior to the English that settled there. As is the case with many societies, certain voices of dissent began to spin. These voices questioned the assertions of the English about the natives. They refused to accept the seemingly immoral acts committed by both sides as an inevitable process. And they wished to learn more. Among these voices rose that of Roger Williams.
In his work A Key into the Language of America, Williams learned the language of the natives and assembled his findings into a ...
... middle of paper ...
... multiple-speaker device. Three voices collating different perspectives create a persuasive narrative on several levels of debate. In fact, the author’s use of this device created a sense of layering that could not otherwise have been achieved. Every point the Williams made, for example received justification on multiple levels for multiple purposes. Such is the nature of this device. Williams applied it for an emotional and logical duet of persuasion, but the implication of these factors creates a multiplication of compulsion for the