Rowlandson, Mary

The Sovereignty and Goodness of God: with Related Documents (The Bedford Series in History and Culture)

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History Facts , $$ Making Fiction or a Religious Missionary?
great history and great literature, too
A fascinating historic document
Religious devotion in Indian captivity

The Sovereignty and Goodness of God: with Related Documents (The Bedford Series in History and Culture)
Mary Rowlandson
Manufacturer: Bedford/St. Martin's
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0312111517

Customer Reviews:

History Facts , $$ Making Fiction or a Religious Missionary?.......2005-01-26

After reading books such as The Name of War by Jill Lepore and Dawnland Encounters by Colin Callaway, I am a bit skeptical of Mary's intentions for writing this piece.

The name of war has a section of how much press that King Philip's War received. It was astounding. In only a two-year period, there were 18+ books written on the war. Everyone with a press was trying to cash in with Europe so interested in the outcome.

Combining this information from Lepore with Colin Callaway's, I have come to doubt the information she gives. Callaway's book tries to escape the typical Euro-indian encounters, by discussing how they co-existed in economical, religious, and ecological terms. His studies on Native Americans taking prisoners, tellsa different story. In most cases, Native Americans from the North East tried to assimilate their captives into their own society to replace brethren lost in war. Though this did not always happen, it was more often than not. Callaway happens to be the leading authority on Native American studies.

Mary's description of her captivity tells a different story of threats, hunger, and slavery, in captivity while God and bible scriptures gave her hope. Having been the wife of a preacher, her words of God could be her attempt to fill reader's minds with religious beliefs in hopes of a conversion. I think it is a combination of all three.

Though she did have reason to hate the Native Americans which gives plausibility to her story, I still feel it is more fact than fiction. They did murder much of her family, including her 6-year old daughter which gave reasons of hate. But what other reason to actually write such a story but for the reason's aforementioned?

great history and great literature, too.......2002-02-12

Interestingly enough, I read this for a course on early American literature. But as a history major, I can say that it would have served equally well in a course on, say, Colonial New England or Social Life in Colonial America. It provides fascinating insights into Puritan life--especially into its religious beliefs and practices and the huge role they played in the life of a Puritan. Moreover, it chronicles the contact of two societies at odds: Puritans and Native Americans. Rowlandson's descriptions of her captors are exceedingly interesting and give depth to any consideration of life in early America. Salisbury's notes and introduction are also quite helpful. Read as a piece of literature, moreover, The Sovereignty and Goodness of God proves to be a fruitful topic for study, as well as a great complement to its function as an historical document. Considering my English course included some rather unsavory texts, this one was much appreciated and quite refreshing, too.

A fascinating historic document.......2001-09-30

"The Sovereignty and Goodness of God, Together with the Faithfulness of His Promises Displayed," by Mary Rowlandson, is a compelling piece of colonial American literature. First published in 1682, this autobiographical text represents a genre of literature known as the "captivity narrative": a first-person account of a white settler who was held as a hostage or prisoner by Native Americans. In Rowlandson's case, she was taken captive during Metacom's War (also known as King Philip's War), which took place in 1675-1676.

The edition of Rowlandson's book edited by Neal Salisbury is excellent. This edition contains Rowlandson's text, together with a wealth of other materials: a thorough introduction, many maps, a chronology, a bibliography, and other historic documents from Rowlandson's era. The many illustrations include photographs of the title pages of earlier editions.

Rowlandson's captivity narrative is a significant milestone in American literature; the introduction to the Salisbury edition notes that the text "has been almost continually in print since 1770." Since the text itself is relatively short, it has appeared in anthologies (see, for example, "The Harper Single Volume American Literature," third edition). But the many "extras" in the Salisbury edition definitely make it a book worth buying, even if you have an anthology already containing the Rowlandson text.

Rowlandson's memoir itself is not great literature stylistically. But it is a fascinating text with some really striking passages. Rowlandson's extreme evangelical Puritanism will likely alienate or bewilder some modern readers, but her religious attitude should be read in historic and cultural context. Similarly, her extremely racist descriptions of Indians ("merciless Heathen," "ravenous Beasts," etc.) should to be read in context (but should not be trivialized, especially in multiethnic classrooms where this text might be taught).

This book is a significant document of contact between cultures in times of extreme crisis. It is an especially intriguing text for those careful readers who really try to read "between the lines." Recommended as companion texts: William Apess' "A Son of the Forest and Other Writings" (Apess was a pioneer Native American writer) and James Fenimore Cooper's novel "The Last of the Mohicans."

Religious devotion in Indian captivity.......1999-03-03

Modern feminists who claim Rowlandson as a progenitor are sorely mistaken. Rowlandson, in fact, ascribed to those same conservative, religious values that today's society lacks.

Captured by Indians: A True Account by Mary Rowlandson (America's Past) (America's Past)

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Captured by Indians: A True Account by Mary Rowlandson (America's Past) (America's Past)
Mary Rowlandson
Manufacturer: In Audio
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: 1584722223

Book Description

New, Unabridged on 2 CD's; Shrinkwrapped. Narrated by Carrington MacDuffie.

Book Description

This volume collects a wide variety of works from a uniquely American literary tradition, the captivity narrative. Beginning with an excerpt from Hans Staden's The True History of His Captivity, which influenced the American captivity narrative, this volume presents accounts by early settlers held captive by Native Americans (Mary Rowlandson, John Smith), narratives by African American slaves (Olaudah Equiano, John Marrant), and others. Collected with the real-life accounts are two captivity poems by Lucy Terry and John Rolling Ridge, and several popular tales and legends on the subject.</p>

Customer Reviews:

Subjective stories of "Captivity" in American Life.......2006-01-08

I read this book as part of a English course at UC Berkeley. The two stories that we were 'assigned' were the Rowlandson & Equiano stories. Mary Rowlandson's tale of being the penultimate Puritan Christian who was taken by "savage Indians" is about as far from objectivity as any memoir from George W Bush. Over and over again, she reminds the reader how horrible it was for her to be kidnapped and put to work among the Indians and how great God was to put her in such a challenge. If you are not a hard-lined Christian, you will be hard-pressed to like her narrative as it is far from truth-ful and only expunges stereotypes. The other main story is by Equiano and it is a much better "read" than Rowlandson's tale. However, when one reads Equiano, they get a sense of the veracity of the situation. But most of what Equiano wrote was not truthful at all. But he, as an African-American former slave, is trying to appeal to the slave-holding audience of white America. Either way, this book is so-so. I would never consider it a work of great literary value.

Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson

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Obesity
Mary in the New World
a first person narrative is one of the best kind of books
Very One sided
First book published by American woman

Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson
Mary White Rowlandson
Manufacturer: Hard Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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The Sovereignty and Goodness of God: with Related Documents (The Bedford Series in History and Culture)
A People and a Nation

ASIN: 1406944017

Book Description

In February 1676, during King Philip's War, the frontier village of Lancaster, Massachusetts, was attacked by a party of Nipmuck Indians and completely destroyed. As relief from Concord approached, the attackers withdrew, taking with them 24 captives, including Mrs. Mary Rowlandson and her three children.
For almost three months the little family was forced to live with their captors and endure exposure to a New England winter.The youngest child, who had been injured during the attack, failed to survive. Eventually ransom was paid and the family released.
Mrs. Rowlandson's account of her experience was published in 1682. It became a"best-seller" of its day and created a new literary genre, the captivity narrative. Such accounts were in part responsible for the mistrust and hatred of the Indians that plagued the country for centuries. It is also the first publication in English by a woman in the New World.

Customer Reviews:

Obesity.......2007-04-27

If you're fat and found dieting is genuine starvation...blah, blah and you can't fill yourself now-you're real and not head tripping, you'll be interested to know that Mary Rowlandson could never feel physically full after the captivity. She points out that the Bible even mentions that syndrome. I recently switched to Creationism because everything in the Bible eventually turns out to be true scientifically. There is a malfunction from going too hungry that we haven't medically figured out yet. It is there in our faces. Mary and her Bible is to behold. The Lord used her. He used her to prove he is always right. She is for the year 2007. She went through that horror for our times. Not hers. "Twiggy" body is anti-christ and causes a real disease of perpetual hunger.

Mary in the New World.......2005-11-10

Mary Rowlandson, a Minister's wife in New-England as it says underwent a cruel and inhumane treatment from the Indians that took her captive. This is a story of sorrow and pain, of faith and truth, of tears and reflections, and of grief and hopes. The Indians poured their wrath and anger against this helpless small community demonstrating to them what kind of human beings they were; probably all of them were not like them, but in reality I have little enthusiasm to lift up any merciful praise towards these Indians when reading this painful story.

Mary describes these Indians as `cruel and barbarous Salvages'. As her Per Amicum recalled from the scriptures "Thus all things come alike to all: None knows either love or hatred by all that is before him". A sad Catastrophe! (p. 6). They furiously attacked with guns, burning the houses which such a calamity that was said: `the smokes were ascending to Heaven'. They went to the first house where five persons were taken: the father and the mother and a sucking child, to whom they knocked on the head and the other two that were carried alive. We can see the nature of these attackers when they shot and wounded one which when down on the ground begged for his life, but they would not hearken to him, but knocked him on the head, stripped him naked and split open his bowels (p. 10).

They were `Barbarous Creatures according to Mrs. Rowlandson's narrative, they put down everybody with wounded and bleeding bodies..."and our hearts no less than our bodies." (p. 12). The sorrow they produced can be gathered in her words when she said: "I must turn my back upon the Town, and travel with them into the vast and desolate wilderness, I know no whiter. It is not my tongue or pen can express the sorrows of my heart and bitterness of my spirit that I had at this Departure: but God...I went on foot after it, with sorrow that cannot be expressed." (p.13); but for these Indians was just one more thing...'they, like inhuman creatures, laughed, and rejoiced to see it.'

In the midst of it all, miraculously, one of these salvages struck her as a lost star or beam of light by offering her a Bible he had from the Medfield fight, where they committed sacking and looting. He took it from his basket and gave it to Mary. She interpreted it as a gift from her merciful God in the middle of this valley of darkness (p. 16).

I cannot help but mention what these barbarians did to a pregnant woman in miserable conditions. "Being so near her time, she would be often asking the Indians to let her go home; they, not being willing to that, gathered a great company together about her and striped her naked, and set her in the midst of them; and they had sung and danced about her (in their hellish manner) as long as they pleased, they knocked her on the head, and the child in her arms with her. When they had done that they made a fire, and put them both into it..." (pp. 17-18). Words speak for themselves.

It is very interesting how these Puritans were similar to their English ancestors but more `pure' in the sense that they were very devoted to their faith in a distant, almost forgotten world.

Her puritan faithfulness could be noted when in the middle of her struggle she could cite the prophet Jeremiah, quoting from the Bible his chapter 31, verse 16:

"Thus says the Lord, refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears, for thy work shall be rewarded, and they shall come again from the land of the enemy."(p. 18).

Mary Rowlandson sees her captivity as a sign of God in many ways, some of them even contradictions. For instance, at one point she compared herself with the biblical story of Lot in Sodom and recalled when she was removed as the wife of Lot when looked back resulting in being transformed as a salt stone. In this case she saw herself looking back from where she was coming and no matter what we know about her past as a person, she compares herself in this case with Lot's wife which was not a good example as a woman. Eventually she probably wanted to point out the mercy God had protecting her as a humble servant.

On the 'other side of the river' she compares herself with Job, who was a totally different person than Lot's wife. He was a righteous man that was tented by Satan in order to prove to God that he was not 'as good or perfect' as he looked then. Thus on page 21 she cited...'now we might say as Job, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return; the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.'

She sees herself again as under the guidance of God, and as a living sign going like Job through a time of testing and character building for the sake of God's Kingdom. She cites Job again on page 27:...'Yet upon this, and the like occasions, I hope it is not too much to say with Job, have pity upon me, have pity upon me, Oh ye my Friends, for the hand of the Lord has touched me.'
As Job was a sign to Judeo-Christian generations, Mary Rowlandson assumed herself going through that process almost like a sign for future generation of puritans, trusting always in the redemption promised by God, as when she cites the prophet Isaiah: 'For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.'(p.29), or...'Let the Redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the Enemy'(p.43).

It amazed me that while she was believing that she deserved what was happening to her, nevertheless she was an incredible spiritual strong woman that never lost her hope to be delivered by her merciful God, citing: 'Thus saith the Lord, Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thy eyes from tears, for thy work shall be rewarded, saith the Lord, and they shall come again from the Land of the enemy' (p.45). She believed her suffering was coming to pass at the end of the road. She had, as all humans do, times of doubt and sadness, but finally she always found refuge in the Word of God, the Bible, which I have no doubt that for her in those terrible days was like living a 'practical seminary' where she studied the scriptures as never before; a divine sign and purpose for her, taking in to account how under such hardship surrounded by pagans, she could amazingly conserve that Bible during this dangerous journey in the jungle as a captive.
She was finally experiencing that Valley of Shadow as a puritan witness redeemed back to life also as a resurrectional sign in her life.

This was the most popular personal account of its day- why did Puritans want to read this narrative? What sort of Puritan values or beliefs does this narrative promote?

I found it peculiar to read how being a Christian herself, she does not mention the passion of Christ and her symbolic suffering as a puritan for the Lord's cause among the Native Americans. The puritans were impacted throughout this narrative because she compared herself to the times of the Old Testament where the Jewish nation was brought out of Egypt and experienced hardship in a dusty dessert for 40 years trying to reach, as a chosen nation, the promised land, believing herself that God wanted her to be submitted under such suffering to be greatly rewarded later on.

The same way this narrative was important for the puritans because the image of Mary Rowlandson represented the messianic purpose of 'puritan chosen people' which came through hardships from Europe into the New-promised-English-land with that earthly utopian idea of 'a city over a hill'.
As the chosen ones to 'purify' the Gospel, the puritans saw in this narrative an opportunity to show off the infinite mercy of our Creator even to the Native-Americans; coming undoubtedly inside a 'puritan vessel' full of hope, perseverance and faith that indeed redeem.

Alejandro Roque.

a first person narrative is one of the best kind of books.......2005-06-09

Because it is a first hand account-and who better to tell the story than the person who lived through it?
That's why I take offense at the reviewer who said this book is too one-sided. Hello? Would YOU care to live through a New England winter without any modern conveniences? Would YOU like to be taken captive by hostile savages and have your life distrupted and your child die as a result? Perhaps it's not politically correct these days to see indians as savages but excuse me-they raped women and killed children. They burned homes and tortured men. Like it or not that's how many of them were back then. (Notice I didn't say ALL so don't get your dander up.)
This book is a look at a person's life and her perspective on it. How she dealt with a tragedy of unknown modern proportions. How she lived through it and what she learned from it.
Fascinating stuff, in my opinion.

Very One sided.......2004-06-24

I loved all of this witches acounts of Wheetamoo, greatest sachem ever! but she was sooooooo one sided! I hated how she talked about the Sachem Wheetamoo. I wish that she was more two-sided and it is NOT understandable of her harsh words tword Wheetamoo or any of the FRIENDLY indians The author is a mean witch with a b!

First book published by American woman.......2004-02-27

We, Chapman Billies, Inc. published this edition and Trafalgar Square distributed it for us at first. It has never been out of stock. Of course we think it should get 5 stars, otherwise we/I would not have put our money behind it. Mrs. Rowlandson tells of the attack on her village, the wounding of her youngest child, their being kidnapped,forced to go with her captors for several months in a New England winter, and watch her child die before being ransomed. To expect her to be an enlightened 21st century woman as she tells her story is to be, Ugh, un-brave.

The Captive: The True Story of the Captivity of Mrs Mary Rowlandson Among the Indians and God's Faithfulness to Her in Her Time of Trial

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The Captive: The True Story of the Captivity of Mrs Mary Rowlandson Among the Indians and God's Faithfulness to Her in Her Time of Trial
Mary White Rowlandson
Manufacturer: American Eagle Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0929408039

The Account of Mary Rowlandson and Other Indian Captivity Narratives (Dover Books on Americana)

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The Account of Mary Rowlandson and Other Indian Captivity Narratives (Dover Books on Americana)
Mary Rowlandson
Manufacturer: Dover Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Captured by the Indians: 15 Firsthand Accounts, 1750-1870

ASIN: 0486445208

Book Description

Among the most celebrated of such documents, Rowlandson's account of her captivity by the Narragansett Indians in 1676 details her hardships and suffering, but also includes invaluable observations on Native American life. Also included are 3 other famous narratives of captivity among the Delawares, the Iroquois, and the Indians of the Allegheny.

A Narrative of the Captivity & Removes of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson (American Biography Series)

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Great Book. History from her own hand.

A Narrative of the Captivity & Removes of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson (American Biography Series)
Mary White Rowlandson
Manufacturer: Reprint Services Corp
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0781283329

Customer Reviews:

Great Book. History from her own hand........2002-07-31

I've taken to reading history lately, but only those works written by those actually there. This is Mary's own personal diary, kept for her two years of captivity by Indians in 1675. This is one of my more cherished books.
Her village was attacked by Indians and all present killed or taken hostage. Her neighbor's murders were described.
*Mine is a 1930 edition signed by the owners of the only 1903 edition which it was reprinted from.
Read what life (and death) was really like with the Indians as neighbors. Not the "history rewritten" version we are being taught.

-The 5 stars are for it's value to me. It is not written by a great author, nor is it many hundreds of pages long. It is a straight forward diary.

Captured by Indians: The True Story of Mary Rowlandson and Others
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Captured by Indians: The True Story of Mary Rowlandson and Others
Mary Rowlandson
Manufacturer: In Audio
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: 1584722231

America's History 5e V1 & Sovereignty and the Goodness of God & Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass 2e
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America's History 5e V1 & Sovereignty and the Goodness of God & Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass 2e
James A. Henretta , David Brody , Lynn Dumenil , Susan Ware , Mary Rowlandson , Neal Salisbury , Frederick Douglass , and David W. Blight
Manufacturer: Bedford/St. Martin's
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0312445830

The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, Who Was Taken Prisoner By the Indians with Several Others, and Treated in the Most Barbarous and Cruel Manner By Those Vile Savages. With Many Other Remarkable Events During...
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The Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, Who Was Taken Prisoner By the Indians with Several Others, and Treated in the Most Barbarous and Cruel Manner By Those Vile Savages. With Many Other Remarkable Events During...
Mrs. Mary Rowlandson
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SAJIT6

Product Description

On Thursday, February 10, 1676, a state of alertness prevailed in the town of Lancaster, Massachusetts. Its 50 families were always ready to crowd into the 5 garrison houses in case of an Indian attack. Joseph Rowlandson, minister to the small frontier town, was in Boston appealing, once again, to the colonial government for protection. His appeal fell on deaf ears. At sunrise, 37 people were housed in the Rowlandson garrison house. Gun shots were heard, the houses were under attack. Amid a flurry of bullets, three men were killed. The attackers set fire to the houses. As the inhabitants came out, the warriors attacked them. Mrs. Rowlandson relates, "Then I took Children (and one of my sisters, hers) to go forth and leave the house: but as soon as we came to the dore and appeared, the Indians shot so thick that the bulletts rattled against the House, as if one had taken an handfull of stones and threw them, so that we were fain to give back." (p. 119) She saw her brother-in-law fall, dead from wounds; her nephew, killed, and her sister shot. All around her was carnage. She was shot through her side and the child she carried in her arms was struck by the same bullet. There were 13 killed and 24 taken captive. According to Mary Rowlandson's account, "I had often before this said, that if the Indians should come, I should chuse rather to be killed by them then taken alive but when it came to the tryal my mind changed; their glittering weapons so daunted my spirit, that I chose rather to go along ... then that moment to end my days ... ." (p. 121) Mary Rowlandson published her experiences with the Amerindians in 1682. Her memoir commanded intense interest in Great Britain as well as in the colonies for its portrayal of the daily danger of life in the colonies.

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