Case Of Eunice Williams Her Father example essay topic

Why did Eunice Williams remain unredeemed? There is no singular reason as to why Eunice Williams remained unredeemed. There are however some factors which are likely to have played a more important role than others, such as her loss of English, her religion, the difference in her environments and the difference in her upbringing with the Indians in comparison to her life in New England. The lack of extensive documents on her captivity and the one sidedness of the sources make it difficult to draw any concrete conclusions as to Eunice and her reasons for not returning to the place of her birth. One reason for Eunice remaining unredeemed could be due to her relationship with her father and the Puritan attitudes towards parenting. Puritan children were brought up in a very strict environment.

They were moulded from being young to be just like their parents and led a very structured life. In contrast the way of life of the Indians must have seemed very free and much more fun for a small child. In the case of Eunice Williams her father is seen as showing very little emotion towards her, which could have affected her decision to stay, as could, upon her arrival in Canada, receiving an adoptive mother. Her own mother was killed in the raid on Deerfield and so having a surrogate mother could have proved very appealing to Eunice who at the time was young and still very much dependant on her mother. Another major factor would be the differing religions of the two communities. Due to her young age when she was taken from Deerfield she remembered less of her Protestant beginnings the longer she stayed away until eventually Catholicism was all she knew.

She told her father at an early stage in her captivity that the Indians "force me to say some prayers in Latin" and how they "profaned God's Sabbaths" This would have caused her to lose her Protestant religion the longer she remained in captivity. As she grew up returning to a Protestant community and re embracing their way of life would not have appealed to Eunice as she remembered nothing or very little of her former religion. The starkly contrasting environments could also have played a major role in her decision to stay in Canada. Deerfield where she spent her early years was a frontier outpost and was surrounded on all side by walls to discourage any attacks. Living in a fortified village, afraid to go outside the walls for fear of an attack could have felt much like a prison for Eunice, especially compared to her much freer existence among the Indians. This could have been a reason why she did not wish to return to living her life in fear of what might be on the other side of the walls if she were to return to Deerfield.

Puritan women in Deerfield at the time of the attack were subservient to men. The men did all the hard work while the women kept the home and raised the children. This was especially true to Eunice, who, due to her fathers position within the community would have lived a very sheltered life. It has been documented that the Williams family had a slave to do their jobs for them and Eunice would therefore be simply known for being her fathers daughter. This is a stark contrast to the way of life of the Indians, for women play a more prominent role in society. They were involved in "planting and tending cornfields.

And harvesting the fully grown crop" In fact the women do everything with regard to bringing in the corn, from drying it out and grinding and storing the kernels. They also grew other things such as pumpkins and "watermelons and sunflowers". The women were also responsible for cutting the wood to make the fires and tending to animals, as well as running the home and bringing up the children. Playing such a prominent place in society could have given Eunice a feeling of self worth, which she would not have felt at home.

It could have made her feel like she had more of a purpose and it could have been the very thing she needed to make her stay. Indians also incorporate captives into society better than the English incorporate the Indians, especially children. They are adopted into families and therefore there is less distinction between those who are born there and the captives. The care the Indians showed for Eunice could be what encouraged her to stay, as she did not feel threatened by her captors. Another major reason was the dedication on the part of the Indians in depriving her of her previous culture and lifestyle.

They changed her dress and her religion and her way of life to such a degree that she lost all of her former culture. This isolation from everything she knew forced her to rely heavily on her captors and this could have prevented her from trying to return as she had become too dependant on her adoptive family. Her loss of English also played a big role in why she remained unredeemed. This occurred sometime in the first two years of her captivity as even if you were held captive with other English speaking people it was forbidden to converse in it. Joseph Kellogg remembers his own captivity and how "the Indians prevented the captive children speaking together in the native tongue".

The loss of her English was apparent when John Schuyler came to visit her. After he "first speak to her in English, Upon which she did not answer me" it was his belief that "she did not understand me". Due to being unable to converse with her as she did not understand him it could have had an effect on why he was unsuccessful in trying to get her back. It seems clear that in those early years Eunice wanted to be redeemed as her father says after meeting with her she was "very desirous to be redeemed out of the hands of the Mohawks" However due to the distance separating her from her family back in Deerfield, negotiating her release proved difficult, especially as they had to use a third party- the French, to communicate with the Indians in Canada. In later life meeting her husband and falling in love could have been a reason as to why she stayed in Canada. It is documented that Eunice and A rosen went to the priest themselves and asked to be married, suggesting that the marriage was not arranged and that their feelings for each other were genuine.

Arranged marriages were common at this time and it is documented that "when the matrons have determined the choice of a wife... they go make the proposal to the girl's relatives" Due to his commitments to the Indian community it would not have been possible for Eunice to return to Deerfield without leaving her husband behind, something which she would not do. Although her visits to Deerfield to stay with her brother and her attendance at his church services could have given hope to her family that she could still be redeemed this was not the case. When they asked her to stay in New England and not return she would not agree to it. The only reason she offered was that "living among heretics would endanger her and her children's salvation". The fact that she was allowed to travel to her old home and meet her family without restriction shows the confidence of the Indians that she would not return to the place of her birth. She did however care for her brothers as evidenced by her letters addressed "My dr brother" and the fact that she and her family "have a great desire of going down to see you" and that she will remain his "loving sister until death".

These feelings show that despite not wishing to speak with her father due to his re marrying, she is quite willing to speak with her brothers. However there is no mention of staying in New England permanently despite the death of her husband, which proves he was not the only thing keeping her in Canada all those years and that other factors were involved. All of these factors contributed heavily as to why Eunice remained unredeemed, as it is likely they all had a role to play in the turn of events. It is unlikely that the different environment in which she was living was the sole reason for her not returning. Similarly it is also unlikely that the different style of parenting was solely responsible. However all of these reasons combined, affecting her over a period of time could be why Eunice stayed away.

It could be argued however that Eunice's redemption was successful as she was freed from an overbearing society in which she felt like a prisoner and lived a freer existence with the Indians. This however is only speculative due to the few sources available on the life of Eunice and the efforts of her family to redeem her.