The narrative of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson is a vivid description of the struggles and hardships during her abduction by native Indians. She gives an account how their settlement in Lancaster was attacked, family members killed and others injured, her survival under capture and her eventual release. She judges her captors through her Christian perspective which is obviously biased. She notices the differences and similarities in cultural traditions between the Native Americans and the European settlers.
One similarity that Mrs. Rowlandson notices between the two clashing cultures the acts of kindness by a few people. She narrates one act of kindness where a squaw gave her food and allowed her to cook using her kettle (Rowlandson, 1682). During another instance, she is given food and sheltered by a Native Indian couple. She attributes these acts to the natives rather to her Christian God. This makes her think of her captors as having a sense of humanity like her own European Settlers society. However, her anger towards the Natives remains unchanged.
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Rowlands also extensively writes about the difference in civilization between her people and the Native Americans. The continually refers to her captors as barbaric creatures. She views the Native Americans as animals, goes as far as describing then as unrefined creatures and savages (Rowlandson, 1682). The many instances in which she uses negative descriptions to show their way of life affirms her opinion of the Indians as uncivilized people. They are shown to be very different to her Christian society which is more organized and distinct from the animal-like lives of the Indians.
In conclusion, Rowlandson’s whole narrative appears to be guided by the anger she felt towards her captors. Her Christian perspective does not help matters. However, she still manages to notice a few similarities between her own people’s traditions and those of the native Indians.
References
Rowlandson, M. (1682). Narrative of the captivity and restoration of mrs. Mary
Rowlandson. Retrieved from https://wwnorton.com/college/history/america-essential-learning/docs/MWRowlandson-Autobiography-1682.pdf.
