The Pressure to Assimilate
There are times when assimilation is not a choice but rather something is forced. In circumstances such as being taken hostage, the ability to survive must come at the price of assimilating one's own customs into another lifestyle. In February of 1675 the Native Americans who were at war with the Puritans obtained hostage Mary Rowlandson of the Plymouth colony. During this time she must perform a role that is uncommon to a colonial woman's way of life so that she may live among them. With the need to survive, how can a person accommodate a second culture? The actions of Mary Rowlandson demonstrate how a person can gain, retain, and end up examining their own beliefs for logical validity.
Due to a limited food supply in the tribe, it can't be generosity given to Rowlandson; doing so would cause the entire tribe to become hungry. Rowlandson hand makes clothes for Native Americans in exchange for essentials. She trades with her caretakers and even the well-known King of the tribe. On several occasions she argues with the Natives, attempting not to lose what is her property. Trading and arguing with others was not a job performed by women in her colony; however, in her situation, a change of role is needed in order for her to live with her captors. In the seventeenth century, her change of role might have been seen as a sign of weakness, but today, it's much easier to see her change of role as being a sign of strength; After all, it takes a strong willed person to carry out a change in their life.
An altering of one's religion alone could be a difficult task for some, but for Puritans in everyday situations, a change of belief is considered absurd. After being brought up to believe intensely in a religion, to give up everything you believe would be difficult because alternative religion is never practiced. Even Rowlandson, under her conditions, could not give up her religion during her imprisonment; consequently, she went out of her way to read her bible without the knowledge of her captors. Her actions are not congruent to what a hostage would do in the twentieth century. Today, we have learned logic that allows us to realize that if we withhold what's impulsively wanted, the long-term rewards can bring more happiness. Although Rowlandson was never caught practicing her religion, she did not consider that she might never be physically able to read her bible again.
Believing that smoking tobacco is a disgusting habit, Rowlandson knowingly risks offending King Philip when he offers a pipe as a sign of cultural greeting. At that moment, she did not know why she was being treated so well and did not consider the result of her actions. Philip only meant to be respectful to Rowlandson and treated her as an equal. But because of her extreme beliefs, she was unwilling to make an exception that could possibly permit her freedom. Much of seventeenth century logic is flawed in that foresight is almost always overlooked.
After Rowlandson's capture, she does not judge the actions of the Native Americans in the same way that someone who has not live among them, such as Mather. Rowlandson treats those in King Philip's tribe as equals to her; never talking down to them and not speaking to them as the savages that some considered them to be. It's easy to assume that the actions of others are based on a value system similar to your own, but cultures often have different perspectives. An understanding of her surroundings, and not only her situation, changes Rowlandson's Puritan perspective. She herself said, "I have learned to look beyond present and smaller troubles and to be quieted under them" (83). In this way, a mixture of cultures can produce an elevated viewpoint on life; meanwhile, an isolated viewpoint can be the cause of ignorance and conclusions brought on by nothing more than bias'.
Rowlandson thinks of her captivity not as an imprisonment, but rather a test of faith. Quoting such passages as Psalm, Hebrew, and even Exodus, she uses the bible to relate to her day-to-day experiences, and support her belief that God is watching her. By doing this she integrates what she knows with what she is experiencing. Had she not made this connection and remained stubborn in her beliefs, as her townspeople might have assumed, her time with the Natives may have been difficult and perhaps painful, but it might also have been fatal. Rowlandson relates her situation to her religion, and yet acts with a Darwinist view of needing to adapt. She attempts to fit into her surroundings but believes that she is proving that she is who her culture expects her to be.
In summary, what Mary Rowlandson understands about the Native Americans changes greatly during her confinement. This change in her day-to-day life enables her to live among a Native American tribe while still being a faithful Puritan. The change in her viewpoint gives her not only an understanding of the Native culture, but also her own as well. Although it was never written that her role in the Plymouth colony changed after her return, one could speculate that she may have at least questioned her own beliefs and questioned what God may truly be looking for in a Puritan.
Works Cited:
Rowlandson, Mary. "A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson." Negotiating Difference: Cultural Case Studies for Composition. Ed. Patricia Bizzell and Bruce Herzberg. Boston: Bedford Books of St. Martin's Press, 1996. 67-83.
