Response 1

Response 1

Hello John, I concur with you that the English colonists were much more concerned with transplanting their society and values into native America. You have highlighted that the local natives in Massachusetts looked at the settlers with an amicable view; however, the Englishmen entering New England expected violent encounter and viewed the natives as savages. Similarly, the natives saw New England as land that did not need to be conquered by man. They exploited beaver to trade with Europeans; however, the Europeans were devoted to launch proper colonization and make it like “Old England”. It is these differences that set the stage for the struggle for control in the 17th century. The Indians a, for instance, welcomed the Englishmen with mixed feelings and offered them food and traditional Indian hospitality; however, the English men believed that natives ought to be treated like the Spanish did and exposed them to slavery and drudgery work (Mitchell, 1862). The settlers exercised their perceived cultural superiority and took the native land forcefully to control the cultivation land as well as controlling trade routes leading to the 1962 War (Shoemaker, 1995). The cultural superiority and land grabbing set up the stage for a series of fights that were witnessed in the 17th century.

Response 2

Hello Marguerite, it is an undeniable truth that the European in New England were looking for new permanent settlement and new land that would provide religious freedom and financial opportunity. Europeans were familiar with how to use force and manipulate trade to their benefit. However, the Native Americans in this area had had minimal exposure to the European settlers, and they were optimistic about benefiting from trade and interactions with the colonists. The settlers viewed the Natives as culturally inferior and as people who deserve to be treated as slaves. The settlers hence captured the native land for their economic benefits, setting the stage for the 17^th-century struggles (Shoemaker, 1995). Unsatisfied with the settler’s unfair treatments and land grabbing, the Native Americans staged a series of wars which were witnessed in the 17^th century.

References

Mitchell, D. W. (1862). Ten Years in the United States: Being an Englishman’s View of Men and Things in the North Ad South (Vol. 474). Smith, Elder and Company.

Shoemaker, N. (Ed.). (1995). Negotiators of change: Historical perspectives on Native American women. Psychology Press.