Not an Easy Life Mary Rowlandson

Mary Rowlandson wrote the autobiography, “The Sovereignty and Goodness of God.” She was born in England therefore she was British, however she then moved to Massachusetts during her teenage years. “The Sovereignty and Goodness of God” was published in Cambridge, Massachusetts and in London in 1681. And the genre is a captive narrative. Mary Rowlandson tells the story of events that she has experienced from her captivity.

On February 10th in 1675, Mary Rowlandson and her family notice Native Americans coming to attack Lancaster during sunrise.

They hear shotguns and see houses burning because of the Indians. They watched other families get knocked out on the head, shot down, and killed. They then got to Mary Rowlandson’s families house and tortured it. Before the house burned down, Mary sees everyone fighting for their life while the fire was on the roof of their of heads. Her brother in law was trying to defend their house, but ended up dead. Bullets went through Mary’s side.

Her nephew got his leg broken and knocked out on the head by the Indians. They were all pretty much beaten up with blood running down their legs. The Native Americans told Mary and her family to go with them, but she said she was afraid they would kill her and her kids.

They then said they wouldn’t hurt them if they go along with them. As she travels with them, she wonders how she is even still alive because of how difficult it is. However, she is relying on God to renew her strength.

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They next morning, they have Mary sitting behind one of them on the horse with her child on her lap. As they are traveling, the end up in Wenimesset during the afternoon of that day and Sabbath the following day. During that day, Mary met a man named Robert Pepper, who belonged to Roxbury. He told her he was wounded in the leg at Capt. Beer’s fight. Robert also told Mary that an Indian put oak leaves on his wound, and he was cured by God and able to travel again. So then, Mary did the same, put it on her side, and she was cured as well. Nine days later, she sat with her wounded child, who had nothing to help her save her body. She then died within two hours of the night. They ended up selling her to a praying Indian and then sold for a gun.

The Indians would not let her see child either instead they told her to leave. Mary now has one child that is dead, one in the wilderness, and another which they wouldn’t let her go near. They traveled all night because they had to go to the Philips crew the next day. While they are there, some Native Americans give her food and assure her that she won’t be harmed. Philip accompanies Mary and offers her some tobacco and dinner. They pay her for making clothes for their families. With her money, she cooks for her master and mistress. They refuse to eat it. She ends up visiting wigwams, which was the first time she felt any kindness showed to her because they put a rug under and over her. And this sums up the events that happened during Mary Rowlandson’s captivity.

Mary Rowlandson’s goal was that she wanted us to see what really happened. In the beginning of telling the story, she mentions how she changed her mind about just letting the Indians kill her. She decided to just go with those “ravenous bears,” so she can better declare what happened to her during that terrible time (Rowlandson, ). Another goal of hers was to show us the goodness and faithfulness God had to her. Through all the times she thought she wasn’t going to make it, God carried her along, bearing up her spirit (Rowlandson, The Second Remove). Mary’s attitude throughout her story is hopeful. Although she went through some miserable times, she remained hopeful through it all.

The comparison between “The Sovereignty and the Goodness of God” and “Relation of What Occurred In New France in the Year 1638” is that Fr. Paul le Jeune had a better experience with the Indians than Mary Rowlandson. He appreciated their culture and was a French missionary, so he never saw the brutal side to them like Mary Rowlandson did.