Mary Rowlandson - Research Paper Example

?Research essay about Mary Rowlandson Mary Rowlandson was an Anglo American woman who was born in 1637. She was a captured by the Native Americans and her experiences with the Native Americans during the period of her capture were narrated by her in her book The Sovereignty and Goodness of God. This book manifests the thoughts and beliefs of Mary Rowland who gave one of the best captive stories ever to the world. Mary Rowlandson was born in England as Mary White. Her family left England to America sometime during 1650. Their family moved to Lancaster in 1653 where she was married to Reverend Joseph Rowlandson who was the son of Thomas Rowlandson in 1656. Due to her wedlock with Joseph Rowlandson she gave birth to four children. Mary Rowlandson was a devout Christian and Puritan Faith. During the King Philip’s War her town was attacked by the Native Americans and many of the people of Lancaster was either killed or captured. Mary Rowlandson along with her children was captured by the Native Americans. Mary Rowlandson was kept captive for nearly 11 week and then released for a ransom. An amount of 20 Pounds was paid as ransom to the Native Americans for her release. Few years after her release she wrote a book about her experience with her captors The Sovereignty and Goodness of God: Being a Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson. This book became an instant success and it went through four printings within a short span of time. This is considered to be the best seller of that time. The book is seminal American work and is still considered to be a master piece. Though there were few books which was under the genre of captivity narratives this is considered to be the first captivity narrative story by a woman. Later, many such captivity narrative stories were written by black women who suffered slave life in America. This is one of the oldest autobiographies written and not only that this was considered to be an inspiration for many people to write such captive narrative stories which existed till the nineteenth century. Many critics consider that this story helps people understand the attitude of the white people towards the Native Americans. This book is also praised for the information it provides about the Puritan faith and the Native American Culture and Faith. Mary Rowlandson ‘The Sovereignty and Goodness of God: Being a Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson is arguably the first of its genre. Mary Rowlandson has provided her book in a simple and colloquial language which was also one of the main reasons for the book’s success. Mary Rowlandson’s affinity towards Christianity can be seen clearly throughout her book. Mary Rowlandson begins her book from the day of attack of the Native Indians. The fear which was felt by her during that day can be clearly under stood from her words. Her narrative style was totally different from the style that was used during her period. There was nothing poetic about her language. The words used by her to narrate her experience were raw and it explains the situation as it happened. Form the day of her captivity to the day of her release for ransom has been clearly depicted in the book. The explanations about the Native Indian during the period of her captivity seem to be harsh to many critics. Her story has been divided into twenty sections by her who has been named by her as ‘removes’. In her narratives, Mary Rowlandson describes the Native Americans as barbarous creatures. In all the ‘removes’ she states that she overcome all her difficulties with the help of the God. The Puritan faith of that time has been clearly explained in her book in simple words. She also provides information of about the native culture. Some critics also doubt that it was the original narration of Mary Rowlandson. When studied clearly one can see that there are two voices of narration in the book. Mary Rowlandson was captured by the Narragansett Indians and then she was sold like a product to other clans of the Native Indians. While reading her book we can clearly come across some contradictions between her words. David Minter a famous critic describes this state of voice in her text as “curious and double present-mindedness.” While narrating her experience with her captors she states that she overcame all her difficulty with her Puritan faith. But some empirical and rhetorical expressions were also found in her narrations. The split in Mary Rowlandson’s text raises a serious doubt about the purity of the work. Some argue that there must have been some kind of interference and some argue that this duel voice in the text might be due to some other reason (Rowlandson, 2008). Kathryn Zabelle Derouian (1998) who is the author of Women's Indian Captivity Narratives argues that there are clearly two voices in the book. In her book she states the following line “ The split in Rowlandson’s narrative between the participant and the commentator voices is very clear,.” According to her Mary Rowlandson must have suffered from a mental disorder which is today known as survivor syndrome. This was due to her guilt over having survived the Native Indian attack on her home town and having survived the said attack. In order to overcome her guilt she must have painted her experience in the hues of providential affliction. In the book, Mary Rowlandson states that when she was captured she first wished that she would rather die than being held as a captive by the Native Indians but immediately she changes her mind and states that after seeing all the sharp weapons of the Native Indians she would rather be held as a captive than being killed. These are few examples which proves that she wished to live though many of her friends and family perished. She has even stated that her child was very badly wounded and her wounds were not as serious as her child’s wounds. All these lines must have been due the guilt she felt for having survived the Indian attack and being a captive in the hands of her captives. Few other critics states that this dual voice must have been due the interference by someone else. David Downing a contemporary English author and critic state “Mary Rowlandson generally recounts the events of her captivity in a vigorous and homely style, combining close observation with simple, direct expression. However, when she pauses to consider the significance of a particular detail, her style becomes more elevated as she employs biblical quotations and metaphors to convey her meaning. When read carefully, one can find intentional usage of Devine Interference. In one of the remove Mary Rowlandson states that she heard from a Native Indian that oaken leaves have medicinal values. Further she applies the oaken leaves to her wounds to cure it but she attributes the curing of her wound to the God. From her writings, it is clear that she did not like the Native Americans at any point of time in her captive period. In the book she brings out the cultural differences she experienced with the natives and how she managed through it (Reinbott, 2007). The reader can feel that throughout the book Mary Rowlandson portrays herself as a pure Christian woman and a staunch follower of Puritan faith. Few other examples from the book can also be quoted where we can find that the Divine Interference was added intentionally. Mary Rowlandson states that she lost her way while trying to find her son who was also a captive held by some other Native Indian Clan and she states that her faith in God helped her overcome this difficulty. But throughout her narration we can find that she always knew where she was going. Even while returning to her captors after visiting her son she mentions no difficulty in finding her camp. In every point of time there Mary Rowlandson has taken some time in inserting some kind of quote or some kind of happening which states that God will help those who believe and are patient. As provided in The Matron and the Minister: Duality of Voice in Mary Rowlandson's Captivity Narrative by Kathleen J. Canavan, many critics state that Mary Rowlandson alone wouldn’t have been able to write such a narrative. Few critics suggest that the staunch scent of Puritan faith found the book is due to the interference of ‘Increase Mather’. Increase Mather was the Puritan Minister of that time and the book wouldn’t have been released without having read by Increase Mather at firsthand. Historians and literary theorists doubt that the dual voice in the text is due to the combined work of Increase Mather and Mary Rowlandson. Few historians believe the Increase Mather’s interference in this book was due to his urge for power. At the time of King Philip’s War there was battle for power between ministers for the seat of King of New England. Hubbard who was also a minister argued that the war was as a result of the God’s anger on the Puritans. It is said that, in order to increase the people’s faith over puritan faith Increase Mather interfered and described Mary Rowlandson as a pure believer of Puritan faith and her belief in God helped her overcome all her difficulties. Her writings are straight from the heart, clear and perfectly meaningful which makes it interesting to read. She manifests her beliefs and faith with her clear and lucid way of writing (Weckenmann, 2008). Mary Rowlandson was a staunch believer of God and she endured the hard time under the hands of the captive with the belief that it is a trail of God. In her book, she puts across that God had wanted her to go through the captive period and it was just to increase her faith and belief on him. This single staunch belief enabled her to manage through all the difficult and tough times she faced under the hands of the Native Americans. Mary Rowlandson is considered as one of the finest authors for giving the world one of the best captive stories ever. Reference: Rowlandson, Mary. The Sovereignty and Goodness of God: Being a Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson. Minnesota: Filiquarian Publishing, LLC, 2008. Print Reinbott, Andreas. 17th Century Puritan Readership and the Legitimacy of Mary Rowlandson's Captivity Narrative. GRIN Verlag, 2007. Print Weckenmann, Christian. Mary Rowlandson’s captivity narrative – Applied Puritan ideology? GRIN Verlag, 2008. 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