Daniel Boone and Kit Carson - Essay Example

Daniel Boone and Kit Carson Introduction The American history is made of stories of heroes and heroines who fearlessly led to the formation of the great America. Many frontiersmen made it possible for the massive American to be habitable and economically productive even in the face of the threat of dangerous wild animals and brutal hostile natives. A few names can be attached to this glory of the early America. Such two names are the names of Kit Carson and Daniel Boone, both of who were early frontiersmen. Contrary to what most people may think, early American frontiersmen did not all hold the same ideas or attitudes. A comparison of Daniel Boone and Kit Carson will for instance show these differences. Both Daniel Boone and Kit Carson were both early American heroes. These two heroes had several similarities, just like any other early frontier Americans. Frontiers Both Daniel Boone and Kit Carson were frontiers, and they made major developments to the advancement of America and the exploration of the wild American continent. They made way for other settlers in places where there were not human settlements in the past. Relations with the natives From a relationships point of view, both Daniel Boone and Kit Carson had a rocky relationship with the natives, always getting in war with the American Indians. Boone for instance gives various accounts of his escapades with the Indians who once captured him and later killed his brother and tried to kill him. Carson made numerous expeditions which made him more experienced and skilled in the trade and also earned him problems with the natives (Guild 97). He was a general of war during the Mexican-American war where many American Indians were killed, and their land confiscated. These two frontiersmen had to contend with unhappy natives who were not happy with the new people acquiring their land. However, while both of them had problems with the natives, they had differing attitudes towards the natives. Ironically, despite the bad relationship with the local natives who were a risk to his life, Boone seemed to have a better attitude towards the local natives (Early America chapter 3). He sure had bad times with them, but from his text, the reader cannot detect any contempt for the natives. His writing of the American Indians is just descriptions of the events which took place. He gives an account of the various wars and battles that were fought between him and the Indians or between the Indians and other frontiers. In giving his account of the time he was in captivity with the Indians, he never seems to show any contempt. In fact, booms own problem with the other settlers was his increased honest and his expectations that they would also be honest too, leading to him being cheated (Bakeless 342). During this time when he was in captivity, his wife thought him dead because she did not believe that the natives could have kept him alive. Yet, Boone came out of captivity alive and well, and managed to resettle his family again in the Kentucky region at a time and place where there were continual infighting between the natives and the settler frontiers who in the Maryland, Kentucky and Miami (great Miami) regions. While Boones account indicates a positive attitude towards the natives despite the rocky relationship with the natives, the same cannot be said of Carson who actually helped other settler armies in fighting the local natives. Carson was involved in a number of wars where natives were massively killed, displaced from their native land and other crimes committed against them (Boraas 15). He seemed to pledge allegiance to the union. Basically, he was more of a military guy, than he was a settler. His military wrecked havoc wherever he went and participated on war. He did not have mercy towards the local natives and never hesitated on going to fights with these local natives. This was very unlike Boone, who beneath his conflicts with the natives always seemed to understand that the natives had right to be aggressive in protecting their motherland. Attitudes towards nature By looking at the attitude that these two had towards nature, there are also some of differences that come out. To understand these differences, it is important to understand the driving force behind each of the two frontier gentlemen. Boone, unlike Carson was more of a settler frontier while Carson was a military frontier in the sense that he provided military power to those who wanted to settle. This leads to two major differences in both the way these two frontiersmen looked at the local native and the way they looked at nature. Being a military frontiersman, Carson never looked at the local natives as having a right to possess the lands and therefore saw their aggression as an unnecessary nuisance. He also was not interested in nature or the natural environment. This was not the same case with Boone who, in his text, seems to describe so much the flora and fauna of the various parts he visited. For instance in the first chapter of his autobiography he gives an account of the way the land was. He describes the pathless wilderness, the great collection for wild animals and the colourful meadows which wound with the great rivers of the Kentucky region. He also comments that these features played a big part in attracting settlers who could not resist such a place to do their farming. He also points that this led to conflict between the local natives and the new settlers. In his description of the wars between the local settlers and the natives, he never takes sides but gives a description of the war. This is unlike Carson the military man. Regardless of how the two thought that nature should be treated, they both had a deep passion for natural exploration. In fact, Carson is said to have literally fallen in love with the forest due to his continue adventures in the forest. Both Daniel Boone and Kit Carson seemed to believe that the great wilderness of the great American would be of more use to humankind if there were useful paths and ways connecting the various parts and settlements. Carson was always happy to take a trip across the wild American wilderness even when there was no great need for such a trip. This can be exemplified by the famous coast to coast that he took from California to Washington to report a war victory. one thing that these two gentlemen had in common with regard to nature, and in the context of the then undeveloped and unexplored American wilderness was their passion for the wild and their great desire to make the land more habitable (Stewart 48). In trying to make the land habitable though, they were to face the natives and this led to a major difference in their thinking and attitudes. Boone seemed to think that the land should be good for habitation by both locals and the settlers. Carson saw the local natives as a threat. In fact, as Vestal (250) says, his home was specially designed to protect himself and his family from savage Indians. His home was made as a fortified military camp, and everyone in the home was trained to use a gun just in case the home was attacked by the savages (Abbott chapter 1). Carson had reason to worry though and this was caused by the fact that the local natives were aggressive, always capturing and killing those who they saw as enemies. Carson was in an even bigger risk due to his collaboration with the settlers who were eternal enemies in the light of the natives. From an early time, Carson already decided that he wanted to be a guide to the settlers and helped a lot of then in getting the land which traditionally belonged to the natives. Although Boone was not a local, he seemed to have a better relationship with the natives (Candice 25). The main conflict he ever got with the natives was actually ignited and incited by his European enemies. In this conflict, he led European settlers in the Kentucky region absent the natives who were supported, financed and incited by non settler Europeans. The natives managed to capture him and took him with him in 1778. However, it may seem that Boone was very good with the natives because instead of killing him or even harming him in any way, they adopted him into the tribe, accepting him as one of their own. He did not have a negative attitude towards the natives and was always open in the way he thought of the ways in which both the natives and the settlers could share the natural resources. Despite of his love for the wilderness, Carson was not a naturalist and looked at the natural resources in a different way than Boone. While Boone looked at natural resources as needing the protection of human beings in order to sustain them, Carson looked at the natural resources as needing to be exploited by man. In a nutshell, Carson shared his view on the nature with the intrusive settlers who had come to American mainly to exploit the land. Boone on the other hand looked at the natural resources as needing the protection of man. It is not rare in his text to find that he was not happy with the way the natural resources were being used. He points out, in a somewhat sarcastic voice of how buffalo meat was the main meat especially during poor weather such as cold winters. However, despite his love for nature, he also participated in buffalo hunting for the skins which were in large demand in Europe for making raincoats and other leather products. This was however probably due to the lack of something else to do especially because economic activities in these times were really limited. Carson’s attitude on the nature can be seen in his lifestyle. Despite having a large family, he did not do extensive farming, choosing to depend on game hunting as the main source of food for the family (Abbot chapter 1). Carson’s negative attitude towards the natives could be traced back to his childhood. As Abbot (chapter 1) says, his father also had issues with the natives who were giving him a hard time and encroaching on his land always rearing their huts nearer his cabin and leading to him having to move further west to the west so as to find more room for his endeavours. This early issue between Carson’s father and the natives could have led to him having a negative attitude and making him feel that the natives were a threat, and they were an enemy to be dealt with. In fact, however, the only reasons that the natives were moving further west was not to necessarily to cause trouble with Carson’s father but they were being forced to do so by the settlers in the eastern region. Nonetheless, Carson’s negative attitudes towards the natives and his eternal hatred was ever going last and affect not only the relationship between him and the natives but also affected the way American history was made and the way American was formed. Conclusion Both Daniel Boone and Kit Carson were major contributors of American history and their works and adventures led to the formation of America. These two frontiersmen had a major impact on the formation of the modern America. Despite their differing attitudes towards the natives of America and the natural resources which graced the whole American continent from the east to the west, they both can be credited as the fathers of modern America. Both these gentlemen fought their own wars and led to different aggressions. But most importantly, they were happy frontiers, helping massive settlers to settle in American and making a nation known for its hardworking, daring and innovative citizens. Daniel Boone can for instance be credited for the formation of the western states such as Kentucky and the Carolinas while Kit Carson had a big impact on the formation of the western states such as California. In his path to Kentucky for instance, Boone created a path that was then followed but over two hundred settlers who then settled in the Kentucky region. Kit Carson on the other hand helped in numerous expeditions in the west, most of which he wrote reports for and were adopted by congress of the time. Works Cited Abbott, John. American Pioneers And Patriots: Christopher Carson. 03 December 2003. Web. 11 June 2013 . Bakeless, John. Daniel Boone: Master of the Wilderness. Nebraska: U of Nebraska Press, 1939. Print. Boraas, Tracey. Kit Carson: Mountain Man. Mankato: Capstone, 2002. Print. Candice, Ransom. Daniel Boone: History Maker Bios. Minneapolis : Lerner Publications, 2005. Print. Early America. The Adventures of Daniel Boone: Chapter two. NA. Web. 11 June 2013 . Guild, Thelma S.and Harvey L.Carter. Kit Carson: A Pattern for Heroes. Lincoln,: U of Nebraska Press, 1988. Print. White, Stewart Edward. Daniel Boone: Wilderness Scout. New York City, NY: Cosimo, Inc, 2005. Print. Vestal, Stanley. Kit Carson. Whitefish: Kessinger Publishing, 2003. Print. Read More