Key Themes in Captivity Narratives

Why This Matters

Captivity narratives aren't just adventure stories—they're the first distinctly American literary genre, and they reveal how colonists constructed meaning from trauma, encounter, and survival. You're being tested on how these texts function as spiritual autobiography, propaganda, cultural negotiation, and identity formation. The AP exam expects you to recognize how captivity narratives shaped colonial attitudes toward Native Americans, reinforced Puritan theology, and complicated gender expectations.

Don't just memorize who was captured when. Know what each narrative demonstrates about Puritan typology, providential worldview, acculturation versus resistance, and the construction of the "other." When an FRQ asks about early American identity or cultural encounter, these texts are your go-to evidence.

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Faith as Framework: Providential Interpretation

Puritan captivity narratives transform personal trauma into theological proof. The captivity-and-redemption arc mirrors the soul's journey through sin to salvation, making these texts function as both testimony and sermon.

Mary Rowlandson's "A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration"

• Published 1682—the foundational text of the genre, establishing the template all later narratives would follow or revise
• Typological reading frames her eleven-week captivity as a spiritual trial; she interprets events through biblical parallels, especially the Israelites' wilderness wandering
• "Removes" structure organizes the narrative around physical movements that mirror spiritual states, demonstrating Puritan belief in affliction as divine pedagogy

John Williams' "The Redeemed Captive Returning to Zion"

• Published 1707 after the Deerfield Raid—became a bestseller and anti-Catholic propaganda during colonial conflicts with French Canada
• Ministerial authority shapes the narrative; Williams frames his captivity as a test of doctrinal faithfulness against Jesuit conversion attempts
• Community redemption theme extends beyond individual salvation—his return symbolizes collective Puritan identity preserved against external threats

Jonathan Dickinson's "God's Protecting Providence"

• Published 1699—a Quaker narrative that emphasizes divine intervention through a different theological lens than Puritan accounts
• Shipwreck-to-captivity structure expands the genre's scope, showing how providential interpretation crossed denominational lines
• Non-violent survival reflects Quaker pacifism, offering a contrast to narratives that justify violence against captors

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Gender and Agency: Women's Voices in Crisis

Captivity narratives gave women an unusual platform in colonial literature. The extreme circumstances of captivity created space for female authors to demonstrate competence, violence, and authority typically denied them.

Hannah Dustan's Captivity Story (as told by Cotton Mather)

• Published 1697 in Magnalia Christi Americana—Dustan herself didn't write it, raising questions about mediated female voice
• Violent escape involved killing and scalping ten captors; Mather frames this as justified biblical vengeance, comparing her to Jael
• Gender transgression is both celebrated and contained—Mather praises her action while keeping it within providential narrative control

Elizabeth Hanson's "An Account of the Captivity of Elizabeth Hanson"

• Published 1728—a Quaker narrative emphasizing endurance and maternal suffering rather than violent resistance
• Domestic focus centers on protecting her children and maintaining family bonds, reflecting gendered expectations of female captivity
• Passive resistance contrasts sharply with Dustan's violence, showing how denominational beliefs shaped acceptable female responses

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Acculturation and Identity: The Boundaries of "Civilization"

Some captives didn't want to return—or couldn't fully return. These narratives expose the instability of colonial identity categories and the permeability of cultural boundaries.

Mary Jemison's "A Narrative of the Life of Mrs. Mary Jemison"

• Published 1824 (dictated to James Seaver)—represents a later, ethnographic impulse in captivity narrative tradition
• Voluntary assimilation distinguishes her account; captured at fifteen, she chose to remain with the Seneca, married twice within the tribe, and raised children as Seneca
• Sympathetic portrayal of Native American culture challenges the genre's typical demonization, presenting captivity as cultural adoption rather than imprisonment

John Marrant's "A Narrative of the Lord's Wonderful Dealings"

• Published 1785—a Black Loyalist's spiritual autobiography that transforms the captivity genre through racial and evangelical lenses
• Conversion narrative dominates; his time among the Cherokee becomes a missionary opportunity rather than victimization
• Racial complexity adds layers—as a free Black man, Marrant's "captivity" and "freedom" carry different meanings than for white colonists

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Propaganda and Colonial Conflict: Narratives as Weapons

Captivity narratives served political purposes, justifying colonial expansion and demonizing enemies. Publication often coincided with military conflicts, transforming personal experience into public argument.

John Smith's "The General History of Virginia"

• Published 1624—predates the Puritan captivity tradition but establishes encounter narrative conventions the genre would inherit
• Pocahontas episode functions as origin myth, framing colonization as rescue and alliance rather than conquest
• Self-promotion shapes the account; Smith's unreliable narration raises questions about how colonial writers constructed authority through adventure

Robert Eastburn's "A Faithful Narrative"

• Published 1758 during the Seven Years' War—explicitly frames captivity within imperial conflict between Britain and France
• Anti-French sentiment pervades the account, with Native Americans portrayed as instruments of Catholic enemies
• Military context distinguishes this narrative; Eastburn was captured as a soldier, not a civilian, shifting the genre toward war propaganda

Nehemiah How's "A Narrative of the Captivity"

• Published 1748—emerges from Queen Anne's War period, reflecting ongoing colonial-Native conflict in New England
• Endurance theme emphasizes physical suffering and survival against harsh conditions
• Community memory function—these narratives reinforced collective trauma and justified continued expansion

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Quick Reference Table

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Self-Check Questions

1. Which two narratives best illustrate contrasting female responses to captivity, and what theological difference explains their divergence?

2. How does Mary Jemison's narrative challenge the redemption structure that defines Rowlandson's and Williams' accounts?

3. Compare the function of "providence" in Rowlandson's narrative versus Dickinson's. What denominational differences shape their interpretations?

4. If an FRQ asked you to analyze how captivity narratives constructed Native American "otherness," which two texts would provide the strongest contrast, and why?

5. John Marrant's narrative adds racial complexity to the captivity genre. How does his status as a free Black man complicate the traditional captivity-redemption arc?