The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson is arguably the most celebrated imprisonment history of the English-Indian epoch. Rowlandson ‘s vivid and in writing description of her 11 hebdomad imprisonment by the Indians has given rise to one of the finest literary genres of all times. Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson gives a first individual position into the conditions of imprisonment, an penetration to Rowlandson ‘s positions of the Indians, both before and after her imprisonment and a Puritan ‘s position of faith. Rowlandson displays a alteration in her perceptual experience of “ civilised ” and “ barbarian ” , despite the fact that her overall universe position does non alter.
In Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, Mary Rowlandson, a homemaker and a female parent of 3 from Lancaster, Massachusetts recounts the invasion of her town of Lancaster by Indians in 1676 during King Philip ‘s War. Over those hebdomads, Ronaldson deals with the decease of her youngest kid in her weaponries, the loss of her household and friends and her awful life conditions all the while she struggle to maintain her religion in God. She besides learns how to get by with the Indians amongst whom she lives, which causes her attitude towards them to undergo several alterations. Rowlandson is at first shocked at the life style and actions of Indians, but clip suppresses her dependance on them. By the terminal of her imprisonment, her esteem for the Indian ability to last in the wilderness with limited resources significantly increases. Despite her turning esteem of the Indian day-to-day life, her attitude towards them ever maintains a position that they are the “ enemy ” . Furthermore, Rowlandson ‘s experiences in imprisonment and brush with the new, or “ Other ” faith of the Indians causes her reconsideration, and inquiry her yesteryear ; her experiences do non nevertheless do her to airt her life or alter her ideals in any manner.
Throughout the narrative, Rowlandson exhibits a violent hit between “ civilized ” and “ barbarian ” in her frame of head. In the gap of her narrative, she states that “ It is a grave dark to see so many Christians lying in their blood, some here, and some at that place, like a company of sheep torn by wolves ” ( Rowlandson 8 ) . At first sight, this text may look to be a grim word picture of the sight at Lancaster on the dark of February 10th, 1676, but a deeper analysis might demo otherwise. Rowlandson used the thought of the bible the depicts Jesus as a shepherd, and his followings as an guiltless flock of sheep to pull a analogue between the Puritans to be guiltless and civilised and the Indians being wild and “ barbarian ” animate beings.
Food plays an of import function as its changeless scarceness in the narrative and gives us a glance of how it changes Rowlandson ‘s positions of barbarians and civilized. “ The first hebdomad of my being among them, I barely eat anything ; the 2nd hebdomad, I found my tummy turn really swoon for privation of something ; and yet it was really difficult to acquire down their foul rubbish ; but the 3rd hebdomad, though I could believe how once my tummy would turn against this or that, and I could hunger and decease before I could eat such things, yet they were sweet and savory to my gustatory sensation ” ( Rowlandson 24 ) . In this transition we can see how her positions about the nutrient she antecedently describes as “ foul rubbish ” is now appealing to her. Physically, three hebdomads of minimal nutrient and wash uping travel have taken a toll on Rowlandson, and her demand for nutrient is strong plenty to get the better of any disgust she antecedently felt about eating the Indians ‘ nutrient. On a mental degree, this proves Rowlandson ‘s turning distance to civilized behaviour and blending in with that of her capturers.
The map of faith plays a important function in the narrative, particularly the unsimilarities between the storyteller ‘s spiritual beliefs and the “ Other ” faith of her capturers. Rowlandson invariably draws analogue between the narratives of the bible and her ain experiences. More specifically the Puritan political orientation of the storyteller reveals the differences between faiths and civilizations in this narrative. We have learned that although the Puritans fled to America for spiritual freedom, they brutalized those non of their faith and imposts. After taken into imprisonment by the American Indians, or “ famished bears ” ( Rowlandson 9 ) as Rowlandson describes them, she conveys her strong Puritan values, by knocking and take downing the Indian ‘s faith, or as illustrated by Rowlandson, their complete deficiency of values, ethical motives and spiritual strong belief. Rowlandson portrays the Indians as a hideous species ; nevertheless what Rowlandson considers evil and awful, may be the ideals of other human existences. For case Rowlandson, in her first brush with the Indians, is speedy to note, “ Oh the boom, and vocalizing, and dance, and shouting of those black animal in the dark, which made the topographic point a lively resemblance of snake pit ” ( Rowlandson 10 ) . It is obvious from this statement that Rowlandson, because of her strong rules, instantly Judgess those different from herself. This shows the storytellers ignorance every bit good as her political orientation. While Puritanism is a theoretical account or codification of life for Rowlandson and other Puritans, it forces a rigorous manner of life and belief system which can take to ignorance in both behaviour and attitude. The footings and images Rowlandson uses signify black, beastly, diabolic peoples who have no sense of civility. Furthermore the Indians, or “ Others ” , who are non Christian, and pattern their ain religious imposts, are viewed as barbaric and unnatural to Rowlandson.
Continuing the Puritan belief of Precedence, or God ‘s manus in all facets of life, Rowlandson invariably writes about God ‘s will in her agony. Rowlandson ‘s interaction with the “ Other ” and her Puritan rules reveal a larger importance to the storyteller. Rowlandson feels that her imprisonment is straight related to God ‘s will, and hence believes that God is penalizing her for wickednesss she committed in her yesteryear. As a consequence she is determined to atone her wickednesss to God, and devotes much of her clip reading the Bible ( which she received from an Indian as a spoil of war ) , declaiming Bible, and while she learns to accommodate to her hard state of affairs, she is careful to keep her ideals and unity throughout the clip she is detained. For illustration on the first Sabbath during Rowlandson ‘s parturiency she comments, “ I so remembered how careless I had been of Gods holy clip: how many Sabbaths I had lost and misspent, and how wickedly I had walked in Gods sight ; which lay so close upon my Spirit, that it was easy for me to see how righteous it was with God to cut off the yarn of my life, and project me out if his presence forever ” ( Rowlandson 14 ) . It is clear from this statement that the storyteller attaches her brush with the Indians, or the “ Other ” as a rebuke from God, and a mark that she had been iniquitous in the yesteryear. Had she non encountered the Indians, she may non hold of all time questioned her devotion to God or her old ways of life, like for illustration the manner she spent her Sabbaths before imprisonment.
It is clear that Mary Rowlandson ‘s brush with the “ Other ” causes her to doubt her yesteryear, specifically her devotedness to God. At the terminal of the narrative Rowlandson confirms this claim with the comment:
“ When I lived in prosperity ; holding the amenitiess of this World about me, my Relationss by me, and my bosom cheerful: and taking small attention for anything ; and yet seeing many ( whom I preferred before myself ) under many tests and afflictions, in illness, failing, poorness, losingss, crosses, and attentions of the Worlds, I should be sometimes covetous least I should hold my part in this life but now I see the Lord had his clip to scourge and chastise me ” ( Rowlandson 78 ) .
The grounds from the narrative in many ways could qualify this work as a text in which the storyteller ( Mary Rowlandson ) realizes her errors in the past and redirects her life consequently. This is non true in the instance of Rowlandson, to be more specific her experiences and interaction with the Indians do non dispute her Puritan political orientations, but instead confirms and strengthens them. When the storyteller returns to her former life style she in no manner demonstrates any new cognition from her experience, but instead returns place with the same grade of ignorance that she had before her imprisonment. Rowlandson besides contradicts herself in the narrative by acknowledging that the Indians did non harm her and so naming them “ barbarous pagans ” a minute subsequently ( Rowlandson 72 ) . For illustration she states “ non one of them of all time offered the least maltreatment of unchastity to me, in word or action ” ( Rowlandson 71 ) . After deriving her autonomy nevertheless, Rowlandson proves she has non altered her ideals or frame of head in respects to the Indians by saying, “ I was non earlier so much hemmed in with the merciless and cruel Heathen, but now every bit much with pathetic, tenderhearted, and compassionate Christians. In the hapless and hard-pressed and mean status I was received in ” ( Rowlandson 72 ) . Rowlandson supports with this statement that although she challenges the manner she conducted her life in the yesteryear, she evidently does non experience the demand to accommodate anything. Another interesting point about Rowlandson ‘s statement is that she refers to her friends, household members, familiarities etc. as “ Christians, ” instead than an alternate noun, which further proves her rigorous Puritan ideals have non been altered.
A similar case of Rowlandson ‘s continued ignorance even after her brush with the “ Other ” is when she reflects how God preserved the enemy, or instead the Indians, in the wilderness throughout the clip she was with them. The storyteller comments, “ I can non but stand in esteem to see the fantastic power of God, in supplying for such a huge figure of our enemies in the Wilderness, where there was nil to be seen, but from manus to oral cavity ” ( Rowlandson 68 ) . Rowlandson is in awe that God would allow the Indians survive in the wilderness which shows her bias because it infers that non-Puritans should non be able to populate and thrive entirely on the footing of their faith. This is yet another illustration of Rowlandson ‘s unchanged sentiment of the “ Other ” ( American Indians ) .
It is clear that the Puritan faith plays a important function in this narrative. Mary Rowlandson throughout the narrative conveys to the reader her strong spiritual beliefs and ideals. When encountered with the challenges and troubles of imprisonment, Rowlandson inquiries her past, and believes that God is penalizing her. Throughout the narrative the storyteller is invariably judging the “ Other, ” or the Indians, painting a ghastly image of their ways and imposts to the reader. Her ferociousness towards the “ Other ” is due to her strong political orientations which cause her to be nescient and bias to people different from her. Although Rowlandson inquiries her yesteryear, she does non so airt her life after imprisonment, but instead goes back to the same manner of life and same frame of head as earlier.
Rowlandson ‘s misgiving of the “ Praying Indians ” is apparent from every line directed towards them in the narrative. “ There was another Praying Indian, who told me, that he had a brother that would non eat Equus caballus ; his scruples was so tender and scrupulous ( though every bit big as snake pit, for the devastation of hapless Christians ) ” ( Rowlandson 56 ) . This transition shows how Rowlandson makes a clear differentiation between the Christians and Indians, even though the praying Indians were Christians excessively, similar to how she portrayed English Christians as sheep and Indians as wolves. Despite the fact that Rowlandson portrayed slightly racist positions over the “ praying Indians ” , they were a merchandise of her clip and can non be marked different from other Puritans. As King Phillip ‘s War broke out, some praying Indians joined their native folks to deliver the unjust intervention they were subjected to, an act that caused the Puritans to see all Indians in the visible radiation of uncertainty. Rowlandson ‘s positions can be justified within historical and situational context ; although non deemed right. Rowlandson ‘s euro-centric position of the universe besides comes into drama here when to her the word Christian applied to merely a certain race and nationality and Christian and English are practically one and the same.
This narrative, as reflected upon through modern eyes, shows how hard it is to change a individual ‘s ideals, particularly if they are raised a rigorous Puritan during the 1600s. If Rowlandson had returned to her Puritan community a different individual, so she would hold been chastised by society, and most likely non welcomed back. The end in composing this narrative therefore was non to demo readers how her experiences changed her life, but instead the antonym. Rowlandson ‘s purpose in composing this novel was to corroborate her religion to her readers, and turn out to the Puritan society that faith came foremost even throughout the troubles she endured during imprisonment. It is for this specific ground that Rowlandson pigments such a atrocious image of the Indians in the narrative, and is invariably mentioning to God throughout the full text. If she had shown any sympathy towards the Indian ‘s and their spiritual beliefs, so she likely would hold been ridiculed by her equals. To reason, in the context of present twenty-four hours times this narrative, through Rowlandson ‘s ain words, demonstrates that spiritual political orientations can be improbably firm, hypocritical, and bias. Mary Rowlandson is cogent evidence of how binding and influential the Puritan life style was during the clip period. Mary Rowlandson, did non alter her positions of Native Americans, although her definitions of barbarian and civilised alteration, her sentiments about the Indians after her release were unchanged, instead solidified. She still portrayed misgiving towards the praying Indians.
Work Cited
Rowlandson, Mary White.A The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, A Sandwich, MA: Chapman Billies, 1998. Print.
