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John Smith and Mary Rowlandson: Innocent Captives or Agenda-Advancing Opportunists?
In an era happily devoid of the reality-television genre of entertainment in which a
featured “reality star” supposedly lives out real-life dramatic events while being captured on
camera for television audiences, one might expect to find a lesser number of individuals hoping
either to achieve fame or to advance self-serving agendas. However, both John Smith’s travel
narrative, which is a sensationalized account of his captivity by Native Americans and was
published in 1624, and Mary Rowlandson’s didactic Native American captivity narrative, first
published in 1682, seem to contradict this train of thought. This is to say that both John Smith in
his narrative entitled The General History of Virginia and Mary Rowlandson in her narrative
initially entitled The Sovereignty and Goodness of God exploit the frontier zeitgeist happening in
America to further their distinct and self-serving agendas; they are the reality stars of their time.
The first issue at hand is to discuss how Smith and Rowlandson would have viewed the
concept of the new frontier in America during the 17th century. It is likely that both Smith and
Rowlandson would have subscribed to a concept of the frontier that encompasses the following
elements: It is the part of the country which forms the border of its settled or inhabited regions
(as defined in the Oxford English Dictionary); it involves the question of territory rights; it
involves two or more culturally distinct groups; and the concept of the frontier was invented—or
at least heavily propagated—by written and political discourses of the time (as posited by
historian Howard Lamar). Hence, both Smith and Rowlandson understood that establishing a
settlement or colony in America meant living side by side with Native Americans, who were
culturally distinct from and often opposed to European and early American culture and
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expansion ideology. Smith and Rowlandson also understood that these conditions created a
volatile and frequently dangerous frontier environment. Additionally, it is important to note that
while this frontier environment could be dangerous, it was also seen as a place of adventure and
opportunity. Though both Smith and Rowlandson would likely agree with this assessment of
17th-century frontier zeitgeist, each author used his or her narrative to exploit this spirit of the
time to a different effect.
Smith was an Englishman, an explorer, and in reality, a savvy businessman—as is
evident when he refers to the company’s exploratory endeavors as “business” (46)—who
established the first permanent English settlement in America: Jamestown, Virginia. However,
Smith was loyal to the English crown; and given that Smith only led the Virginia colony for
approximately one year from 1608 to 1609, it is safe to say that Smith always intended to return
to England after exploring the opportunity for investments, capital, and territory in America.
Because Smith never intended to set down roots in America, he needed to recruit more warm
bodies to emigrate from Europe to America. Furthermore, it is critical to mention that when
Smith wrote his travel narrative, he was appealing to a demographic of single, entrepreneurial,
able-bodied, and adventurous young men. Thus, Smith sensationalizes his captivity by Native
Americans in his so-called travel narrative, exploiting the adventurous aspect of the frontier
zeitgeist and emphasizing the ease with which the native “salvages” (Smith 44) could be
civilized and dominated in order to make way for European land and investment opportunities.
For instance, in his narrative, Smith recounts a Native American attack on his soldiers in
sensational detail when he writes:
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Sixtie or seaventie of them, some black, some red, some white, some partycoloured, came in square order, singing and dancing out of the woods, with their
Okee (which was an Idoll made of skinnes, stuffed with mosse, all painted and
hung with chaines and copper) borne before them … [and] charged the English,
that so kindly receiued them with their muskets … that fell down their God, and
divers lay sprauling on the ground; the rest fled again to the woods. (45)
With this account, Smith paints a picture of savage, wild, boisterous, and superstitious Native
Americans who are outfitted in vividly colored garb. Not only does Smith offer his readers these
exciting and derisive details about the Native Americans, which make the dangerous frontier
seem adventurous, but he also makes sure to mention that his men readily defeated the Native
Americans with the ease of their powerful muskets. Here Smith implies that the Native
Americans’ attempts at resistance against the English are short-lived, so future European
explorers, entrepreneurs, investors and settlers need not worry.
At another point in the narrative, Smith describes an interaction with his captors in which
the Native Americans perform a ceremony for Smith. Again, Smith recounts this event in
spectacular—and condescending—detail as he writes, “With most strange gestures and passions
he began his invocation, and environed the fire with a circle of meale; which done, three more
such like devils came rushing in” (48). Smith is most likely describing a Shaman or similar
personage as he performs a sacred ritual and is later joined by additional Native Americans.
However, Smith’s use of words such as “invocation,” “strange,” and “devils” paint a portrait of
pagan figures who summon demon-like spirits on command. This depiction would appeal to
Smith’s adventuresome and enterprising audience, as well as exploit the fact that most of his
readers lacked first-hand experience with Native American culture and probably held
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stereotypical views of these peoples. Thus, Smith emphasizes that Native Americans need
European guidance and civilizing influence from those willing to travel to America.
Although Rowlandson would have seen the concept of the frontier in the same way as
Smith, she used her captivity narrative to exploit different aspects of frontier zeitgeist than Smith
did. For instance, Rowlandson was a Puritan who lived permanently in the New England region
of America. Her family had broken ties with England over religious differences, in essence
committing treason against England and vowing to make America their home. Rowlandson came
from a certain amount of wealth and had married into a socially high-ranking position; her
husband was an influential pastor in the area. Additionally, when Rowlandson published her
captivity narrative, she was clearly addressing a Puritan audience, as the original title of her work
suggests. (It is also interesting to note that Rowlandson later changed the title of her narrative to
A True History of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, acknowledging the
marketing and public-relations aspects of publishing.) With these factors in mind, one can
contend that Rowlandson exploited the frontier spirit in order to preach a Puritanical message of
faith and provide instruction for social conduct while living in such a volatile region, side by side
with “merciless Heathens” (Rowlandson 13), as might be expected from a socially and morally
upstanding wife of an influential pastor.
As briefly alluded to above, Rowlandson also depicts Native Americans in a derogatory
manner, as she adds fuel to the flame of the frontier fire. For example, Rowlandson describes the
initial violence that the Native Americans wreaked on her townspeople as she writes, “It is a
solemn Sight to see so many Christians lying in their Blood, some here, and some there, like a
company of Sheep torn by Wolves” (14). Here, Rowlandson clearly creates a binary opposition
between good and evil, sheep and wolves, and Puritans and Native Americans. Rowlandson even
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employs Christian imagery in a simile in which she compares innocent Puritans to sheep that are
ravaged by evil Native American wolves. Given Rowlandson’s targeted Puritanical
demographic, her agenda with this captivity narrative is to preach an unfaltering faith in the face
of evil; and in order to do so, Rowlandson must first define the evil that her community should
target, namely the heathen Native Americans.
Furthermore, it also seems that Rowlandson meant for her narrative to be didactic and
instruct the Puritan community on how to conduct oneself in a frontier environment, which is
chalked full of danger and evil. This becomes evident as Rowlandson describes one of the most
trying moments of her captivity, which occurs as she is trying to cross a cold, wild river with her
captors. Of the experience, Rowlandson writes:
The Water was up to the knees, and the stream very swift, and so cold that I
thought it would have cut me in sunder. I was so weak and feeble, that I reeled as
I went along, and thought there I must end my days at last, after my bearing and
getting though so many difficulties. The Indians stood laughing to see me
staggering along, but in my distress the Lord gave me experience of the truth and
goodness of that promise, Isai. 43. 2. When thou passest through the waters, I will
be with thee, and thorough the Rivers, they shall not overflow thee. (34-35)
Here, Rowlandson recounts her experience in dramatic detail. She thinks it may be her last day
on earth, her faith is faltering, and the “Indians” are mocking her; yet God does not abandon her.
More importantly, Rowlandson does not abandon her faith. Rowlandson’s faith is tested many
times throughout her captivity, but each time she rediscovers God’s support. This is, in fact, one
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of the main didactic messages that Rowlandson tries to impart throughout her narrative: A
virtuous Puritan never gives up faith in God, no matter how hard times get.
Both Smith and Rowlandson were indeed kidnapped and temporarily held captive by
Native Americans; these experiences did occur in the real-life frontier environment. However,
Smith and Rowlandson were not without a certain amount of agency in the matter. Rather than
simply being innocent captives, the stars (i.e., the protagonists) of these narratives exploited the
circumstances and sensationalized the details of their captivity to advance personal agendas, and
possibly to gain notoriety. Although television did not exist in the 17 th century, Smith and
Rowlandson used print media instead of television media to become reality stars in a frontier
milieu.
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Works Cited
Rowlandson, Mary. The Soveraignty and Goodness of God. New York: Penguin, 1998. Print.
Smith, John. The Generall Historie of Virginia. Cougar Courses. California State University,
San Marcos. n.d. Web. 1 Mar. 2012.