Essay On Mary Rowlandson

King Philip’s War, also known as Metacom’s War, began between neighbors that once peacefully coexisted. The outcome was the bloodiest and most destructive war in American history. During this time, many colonists were taken captive by the Native Americans. Mary Rowlandson became a well-known captive of Metacom’s War through publishing a personal narrative of her captivity titled The Sovereignty and Goodness of God. While others perished, Mary Rowlandson survived captivity because she was accepting of the situation by surrendering and not challenging her captors.
On February 10, 1675, the small town of Lancaster, Massachusetts fell under native attack. Bullets, spears, and hatchets took colonists’ lives while buildings burned to ash. In the

She did not even beg to be let free; however, there was an instance where the natives believed she was planning to run away. Rowlandson visited an English Youth, and word spread that she was attempting to run away and taking the English youth along with her. Rowlandson explained to the natives “[she] would not run away” (90). Nevertheless, the natives were hesitant to believe her and said “they would knock [her] down if [she] stirred out again” (90). Ultimately, her acceptance of her captivity and her patience to resist the urge not to challenge the status of her freedom were the greatest factors for her survival. Other captives attempted to escape and, as a result, perished while Rowlandson continued to survive. Rowlandson even met a pregnant woman that wished to escape and “would be often asking the Indians to let her go home…they knockt her on head…” (p 77-78). The natives ended up killing the woman simply because she was persistent to be free of her captivity. On the other hand, Mary Rowlandson figured out how to become part of the native culture by contributing her sewing skills. She made clothing - such as shirts, stocking, and caps - for natives and received payment in the form of money or food. Rowlandson conformed to live amongst the natives instead of merely being a