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English 233 – Perspectives in American Literature
June 9, 2016
“Mary Rowlandson: Captivity through Freedom – A Religious Journey”
Religious faith played a major role in the lives of Puritans in the seventeenth century.
Mary Rowlandson’s experience communicated a message to the Puritan reader, and herself, a
strong sense of faith and spirituality. Most importantly she presents a personal and honest detail
that elicits empathy from average Puritans. By doing so she provides a forum for others to
recognize their own struggles with God, find a way to remain strong in the hardest of times, and
continue to serve God and live by Christian values.
Puritan’s believe that God formed a special covenant with them and they were expected
to abide and conduct their lives by the Scriptures. They believed that the Anglican Church
needed purification of Catholic religious faith. With little success in England the Puritans
arrived in America with the vision of building a religious community that would be the example
to the whole world. Upon their arrival in America, the Puritans established a Plymouth Colony
in New England and immediately negotiated peace with the Wampanoag Indians. This peace
would end in 1675, as the Indians, under the leadership of Metacom, would turn against the
settlers.
February 20,1676 the town of Lancaster was attacked. Mary Rowlandson, a mother and
minister’s wife, was taken captive. “At length they came and beset our own house, and quickly
it was the dolefulest day that ever mine eyes saw” (Rowlandson 128). Over the next eleven
weeks, her faith in God proved to be the guiding principals that sustained her during her time as
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a captive and living in the wilderness with Indians. The Puritan idea of wilderness was very
simple. It was a place that was void of Christians, no rules or boundaries. Upon the invasion of
Lancaster Mary Rowlandson would now be forced to experience the wilderness. With her faith,
she prepared herself as she was taken away from her home. “By now, the next morning, I must
turn my back upon the town, and travel with them into the vast and desolate wilderness, I knew
not whither. It is not my tongue, or pen, can express the sorrows of my heart, and bitterness of
my spirit that I had at this departure: But God was with me in a wonderful manner, carrying me
along” (Rowlandson 130).
During her captivity, Mrs. Rowlandson, remained faithful to her religious beliefs, as they
were the single most important factor that kept her strong in the face of adversity. “Oh, I may
see the wonderful power of God, that my Spirit did not utterly sink under my affliction: still the
