Indian Captivity Narratives

Genre: Indian Captivity Narratives

- 1st American best sellers

- Uniquely American tales

- Written and printed in the colonies

- Large number were written by women

Purpose for writing?

1. Instruction - teach a moral lesson or describe cultural differences

2. Propaganda - perpetuate and reinforce stereotypes

3. Entertainment

Why did Indians take captives?

1. Revenge

2. Trade

3. Adoption

Why write about the captivity experiences?

1. To come to terms with the experience

2. To make money

3. To comply with wishes of friends and family

4. To provide insider information about the Native tribes

Can we trust these primary sources?

- Yes and no

- Must read each narrative critically

- Yes, factual information: environment, food, living conditions, clothing, etc.

- But, stories are shaped by outside influences; must consider purpose for writing and audience

a) Rowlandson and Dustan influenced by Puritan writings and sermons

b) Jemison's account is written down by biographer James E. Seaver

Mary Rowlandson's Captivity Narrative: Setting

- Captured Feb. 1676 (early colonial period)

- Narrative was published in 1682

Captured in Lancaster, Massachusetts Bay Colony by Nipmuck Indians

Mary Rowlandson's Captivity Narrative: Captivity

- Held captive for 11 weeks

- Ransomed in May 1676

- Walked about 150 miles

Who was Mary Rowlandson?

- c.1636-1711

- Puritan

- Immigrated to Massachusetts with family when young

- Married in 1656 to Joseph Rowlandson, Harvard educated minister of Lancaster

- Mother of three children

Historical Context: King Philip's War

- June 1675-April 1678

- Metacom or King Philip, chief of Wampanoag

Puritans and the Natives in Massachusetts

- Puritans sought to create a "city on a hill" (John Winthrop)

- Their worldview shaped how they understood and interacted with Native Americans

- Life was a battle between light, holiness, and goodness and sin, immorality, and evil

- If you were not a saint (a person reborn in Christ) you were under the devil's sway

- William S. Simmons: "Captivity by Indians was interpreted as a journey into Hell" (65)

Hannah Dustan's Captivity Narrative: Setting

- Captured: March 1697

- Story published in sermons by Cotton Mather in 1697, 1699, and 1702

- Dustan dictated her story in 1724

Captured in Haverhill, Massachusetts Bay Colony by Abenaki Indians

Hannah Dustan's Captivity Narrative: Captivity

- Killed and scalped her captors

- Escaped by canoe

Who was Hannah Dustan?

- 1657-c.1736

- Puritan

- She was not a church member until 1724

- Mother of 13 children

- Received a bounty for the Indian scalps

- Statue erected 1874; first one of a woman in the U.S.

Mary Jemison's Captivity Narrative: Setting

- 1742-1833

- Adopted by Seneca Indians; her name was Dehgewanus ("Two Falling Voices")

- Married Shenijee and then Hiokatoo, she had 8 children

- Her story is the most famous of the captivity narratives

Who was Mary Jemison?

Captured: 1758

- When she was 80 years old, she told her story to James E. Seaver

- Her narrative was published in 1824

Captured: Western Pennsylvania by Shawnee Indians and French soldiers