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3.5/5
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English 45B
In her narrative The Sovereignty and Goodness of God, American colonizer Mary Rowlandson paints a picture of her removal from her comfortable world of colonial Puritan society into an alternate world of enslavement by the Narragansett tribe after one of the battles of Metacom’s War. During a description of her Fourth Remove, where she spent two weeks living in a camp set in a wooded thicket, Rowlandson presents a clear juxtaposition of her free life in her colony against her captivity by the Narragansett peoples, but through the use of a biblical passage to bridge the two experiences she ultimately presents Scripture as a means of solace which transcends the physical reality of her situation.
The section begins with a wistful recollection of holy Sabbath nights before captivity, and Rowlandson describes how her “Family was about” her, and how they would “pray and sing, and then refresh [their] bodies with the good creatures of God” (Rowlandson 91). The image of family gathering for prayer and song is a joyous one, and though life in a new colony was likely no easy feat this description is laden with the sentiment of community and untroubled piety. This sense of civilization and comfort is extended through Rowlandson’s rambling syntax full of commas, clauses, ampersands, and colons, creating an effect of unhurried and merry reflection. Continuing to emphasize the civility and positivity of her previous freedom, Rowlandson also describes the meat she ate as “the good creatures of God.” Though food being gustatorily good is notable in the context of this story, since Rowlandson comments many times on her revulsion toward the taste or appearance of foods prepared by her captors, goodness and Godliness are also both moral judgments. Especially considering food as a symbol of culture, describing Puritan food as “good” paints it in a righteous light, thus presenting Rowland’s comfort in freedom as morally good. As a whole, her reminiscing evokes a sentiment of civility, satisfaction, and purity.
Rating: 3.5/5
Pages: 64
Started: 19 January 2024
Finished: 20 January 2024
Summary:
Told in a narrative format of twenty "removes," Puritan colonist Mary Rowlandson tells the story of her capture and enslavement by the Narragansett people during Metacom's war.
Thoughts:
I was not having it with this story at the start; the language used to refer to the Narragansett tribe was very uncomfortable and I wasn't sure why this book was being read for an English class. But by the end I was starting to understand; the language Rowlandson uses is very precise in both her view of her captors and her centering of scripture. Though I still did not love this book, it was an interesting and rather intimate historical perspective on a very contentious period in time.
Essay:
Rowlandson’s Captivity Narrative and Scripture as a Bridge Between Worlds
In her narrative The Sovereignty and Goodness of God, American colonizer Mary Rowlandson paints a picture of her removal from her comfortable world of colonial Puritan society into an alternate world of enslavement by the Narragansett tribe after one of the battles of Metacom’s War. During a description of her Fourth Remove, where she spent two weeks living in a camp set in a wooded thicket, Rowlandson presents a clear juxtaposition of her free life in her colony against her captivity by the Narragansett peoples, but through the use of a biblical passage to bridge the two experiences she ultimately presents Scripture as a means of solace which transcends the physical reality of her situation.
The section begins with a wistful recollection of holy Sabbath nights before captivity, and Rowlandson describes how her “Family was about” her, and how they would “pray and sing, and then refresh [their] bodies with the good creatures of God” (Rowlandson 91). The image of family gathering for prayer and song is a joyous one, and though life in a new colony was likely no easy feat this description is laden with the sentiment of community and untroubled piety. This sense of civilization and comfort is extended through Rowlandson’s rambling syntax full of commas, clauses, ampersands, and colons, creating an effect of unhurried and merry reflection. Continuing to emphasize the civility and positivity of her previous freedom, Rowlandson also describes the meat she ate as “the good creatures of God.” Though food being gustatorily good is notable in the context of this story, since Rowlandson comments many times on her revulsion toward the taste or appearance of foods prepared by her captors, goodness and Godliness are also both moral judgments. Especially considering food as a symbol of culture, describing Puritan food as “good” paints it in a righteous light, thus presenting Rowland’s comfort in freedom as morally good. As a whole, her reminiscing evokes a sentiment of civility, satisfaction, and purity.
This impression is starkly juxtaposed by the second half of the paragraph, the transition marked by an abrupt colon followed by an equally abrupt “but in stead of all this,” signaling a separation between Rowlandson’s freedom in the Puritan colony, and her captivity. She then moves on to describe her state while enslaved by the Narragansett, her basic needs unfulfilled: “I had only a little Swill for the body, and then like a Swine, must ly down on the ground.” In contrast to the refreshing and righteous food and the “comfortable Bed” of her freedom, the unpadded ground after a meal of “Swill”—an unappetizing word—creates an especially inhospitable effect. Rowlandson also evokes the idea of immorality in her descriptions of her discomfort: “Swine” are described in the Bible as “unclean” (New International Version, Lev. 11:7), so for Rowlandson’s environment in captivity to render her porcine implies that the environment she’s been placed in is not conducive to moral good. This impression is reinforced in the alliteration of “Swine” and “Swill” since the fricative “s” is associated with the figure of the snake, a symbol of evil and deceit. Through both her syntactic shift from rambling comfort to tense brevity and the contrasting morality and immorality of her two experiences, Rowlandson draws a clear division between her comfortable Puritan freedom and the harshness of her captivity.
As the paragraph progresses, Rowlandson continues to make the misery of her capture very clear, emphasizing it once more with a declaration in the form of an absolute: “I cannot express to man the sorrow that lay upon my Spirit.” However, in emphasizing the desperation of her state under immoral captivity, Rowlandson creates space to evoke the Puritan God: “Yet that comfortable Scripture would often come to my mind.” Scripture, the Bible, and Christianity as a whole are all concepts irrevocably tied to Rowlandson’s past freedom, her existence as a religious woman living in community in a colony. Though through her capture and enslavement Rowland has been abruptly disconnected from her prior comfort and community and forced into a situation she finds immoral and deeply uncomfortable, her reliance on Scripture remains. Indeed, through the continued quoting of biblical passages, she is able to invite comfort and some piety into a situation in which those things are otherwise lacking. In demonstrating Scripture’s ability to bridge worlds, Rowlandson presents a testimony to the universality and power of the Puritan God.
Finally, the location of the scriptural passage within the paragraph further emphasizes its weight. The quote—preceded by the negation “yet,” italicized for emphasis, and notably placed as the final sentence of a lengthy paragraph—is presented as a conclusion, a response to the juxtaposition of Rowland’s contrasting worlds of freedom and captivity. Its structural prominence supports the Puritan view of Scripture as resolute and final and acts as a decisive reinforcement of the power of God’s word. By presenting scripture as a guiding and saving bridge between otherwise sharply juxtaposed worlds, Rowlandson ultimately reinforces its impact, suggesting that the Bible has a power that transcends the mortal trappings of misery and morality.
Text:
“I remembered how on the night before & after the Sabbath, when my Family was about me, and Relations and Neighbors with us, we could pray and sing, and then refresh our bodies with the good creatures of God: and then have a comfortable Bed to ly down on: but in stead of all this, I had only a little Swill for the body, and then like a Swine, must ly down on the ground. I cannot express to man the sorrow that lay upon my Spirit, the Lord knows it. Yet that comfortable Scripture would often come to my mind, For a small moment have I forsaken thee, but with great mercies I will gather thee.” (Rowlandson 91).
Works Cited:
New International Version. Bible Gateway, https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-International-
As the paragraph progresses, Rowlandson continues to make the misery of her capture very clear, emphasizing it once more with a declaration in the form of an absolute: “I cannot express to man the sorrow that lay upon my Spirit.” However, in emphasizing the desperation of her state under immoral captivity, Rowlandson creates space to evoke the Puritan God: “Yet that comfortable Scripture would often come to my mind.” Scripture, the Bible, and Christianity as a whole are all concepts irrevocably tied to Rowlandson’s past freedom, her existence as a religious woman living in community in a colony. Though through her capture and enslavement Rowland has been abruptly disconnected from her prior comfort and community and forced into a situation she finds immoral and deeply uncomfortable, her reliance on Scripture remains. Indeed, through the continued quoting of biblical passages, she is able to invite comfort and some piety into a situation in which those things are otherwise lacking. In demonstrating Scripture’s ability to bridge worlds, Rowlandson presents a testimony to the universality and power of the Puritan God.
Finally, the location of the scriptural passage within the paragraph further emphasizes its weight. The quote—preceded by the negation “yet,” italicized for emphasis, and notably placed as the final sentence of a lengthy paragraph—is presented as a conclusion, a response to the juxtaposition of Rowland’s contrasting worlds of freedom and captivity. Its structural prominence supports the Puritan view of Scripture as resolute and final and acts as a decisive reinforcement of the power of God’s word. By presenting scripture as a guiding and saving bridge between otherwise sharply juxtaposed worlds, Rowlandson ultimately reinforces its impact, suggesting that the Bible has a power that transcends the mortal trappings of misery and morality.
Text:
“I remembered how on the night before & after the Sabbath, when my Family was about me, and Relations and Neighbors with us, we could pray and sing, and then refresh our bodies with the good creatures of God: and then have a comfortable Bed to ly down on: but in stead of all this, I had only a little Swill for the body, and then like a Swine, must ly down on the ground. I cannot express to man the sorrow that lay upon my Spirit, the Lord knows it. Yet that comfortable Scripture would often come to my mind, For a small moment have I forsaken thee, but with great mercies I will gather thee.” (Rowlandson 91).
Works Cited:
New International Version. Bible Gateway, https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-International-
Version-NIV-Bible/#booklist. Accessed 24 January 2024.
Rowlandson, Mary. The Sovereignty and Goodness of God. Boston, Bedford/St. Martins, 1997
Rowlandson, Mary. The Sovereignty and Goodness of God. Boston, Bedford/St. Martins, 1997