Master Narrative Indians

The humble creatures complicate the “master narrative” because the Native Americans traded cod and beaver with the Europeans. The document also discusses the stereotype of the fur trade. The stereotype shows that a common belief is that only masculine European traders participated in the fur trading. However, this is false as many Indian tribes traded with Europeans to improve both lifestyles. The trading complicates the master narrative because in the narrative Indians are seen as savages that would not cooperate with Europeans. The trading shown between the two peoples suggests that both parties benefited from each other. The Native Americans were able to trade furs for materials that benefited the quality of life around them, such as improving

By sending Metacom to negotiate with the Puritans, the Wampanoags revealed that they wanted to avoid conflict and war at all costs. The preventions the Wampanoag try to take show that this Indian group does not match the savage imagery of Indian Americans described in the “master narrative.” Overall, these documents reveal that the Indian people did not understand the motivations of the colonists and why they chose to attack the Indian people. In the eyes of the Wampanoags, the colonists have deceived the Indian tribe by stealing their land. The Wampanoags believed that the English would lay down their arms because of the obvious difference in strength between the two parties. This reveals that the Wampanoags were a smart tribe and did not want to find conflict in a situation where they would certainly lose. The documents also reveal how the colonists viewed the Indian tribe’s grievances. In the eyes of the colonists, the Wampanoags were in the wrong. The colonists were ignorant of the Wampanoags complaints and in the end decided to “subjugate” Metacom and the rest of his tribe. The English did not even explain what they wanted from the Wampanoags and decided to attack them with no