Portrayal of Pilgrims in Plymouth Plantation: Critical Analysis

Values can be defined as a person's “principles or standards of behavior; one's judgment of what is important in life” and they, furthermore, play an important role in most literature (Dictionary.com). In the short story “of Plymouth Plantation,” Pilgrims, also referred to as colonists, journey by boat to Virginia and encounter the Native Americans. After years of disagreement, the Natives and colonists feast together. They strengthen values of stability through religion and reliance on community. This short story shoes different values from the book Into the Wild. In the book, Christopher McCandless makes a life-changing journey into the Alaskan Frontier. McCandless faces many obstacles which interfere with this journey but strengthens his values. Throughout the story, McCandless builds his personal values such as relying on nature for guidance instead of religion and the importance of self-reliance and isolation from civilization and community. Both “of Plymouth Plantation” and Into the Wild contain the two values of dependency on one’s community and enlightenment through faith; however, the difference in the era both were written shows the evolution of these values through time.

The unity of a community is important for the community’s wellbeing; however, throughout history, this value has evolved. In the early stages of America, the community played an important role in everyday society. In the selection “of Plymouth Plantation,” the Natives and Pilgrims often have a difficult time making peace. They orchestrate multiple attacks on each other until one Native attempt to make amends by speaking English to the Pilgrims in order to discuss how to avoid future conflict. To atone for previous attacks, the Natives and Pilgrims “willingly and cheerfully, without any grudging in the least, [show] their true love unto their friends and brethren, [the natives and colonists had a feast as one]” (Bradford 109). The colonists and Natives knew that together they were more likely to survive so their desire for a strong community pushed them to their conflict. As America has evolved, the value of independence has strengthened. This value is clearly shown when McCandless writes, “Two years he walks the Earth. No phone, no pool, no pets, no cigarettes. Ultimate freedom. An extremist. An aesthetic voyager whose home is the road. Escaped from Atlanta...now after two rambling years comes the final and greatest adventure...No longer to be poisoned by civilization he flees, and walks alone upon the land to become lost in the wild” (Krakauer 163). McCandless uses words such as “poisoned” that have a negative connotation to express strong hatred for civilization. He does not believe that one must be an active member of a community in order to succeed and survive. Another evolutionary value of modern America is the belief that one does not have to be surrounded by people to feel joyful. McCandless expresses his belief on this by saying, “So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism..you do not need me or anyone else around to bring this new kind of light in your life” (Krakauer 57). His words show he prefers to be alone and distant from society, which further explains why McCandless believes he needs to isolate himself from society in order to feel free. Evidently, from the colonial era to today’s modern era, values such as being dependent on one’s community have evolved.

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The value of religion has greatly evolved since the colonial era to the present day. In the beginning stages of America, the value of religion and faith is much more prevalent than it is in the present day. In “of Plymouth Plantation,” the Pilgrims were traveling by sea to get to Cape Cod. They were thankful to reach shore after suffering rough travels on the sea. They showed their faith by “[falling] upon their knees and [blessing] the God of heaven who had brought them” (Bradford 1). The Pilgrims praise God for safely getting them safely to land; therefore, they find stability in their faith. The Pilgrims and Natives are often shown praising God in their day-to-day lives. God is an important role in their everyday life, hence the reason that they show gratitude by frequently praising and worshipping God throughout the story. Contrasting the early stages of the development of America, the value of religion and faith in God has evolved to having faith in others and in the natural environment. The evolution of the faith value is demonstrated when McCandless writes a letter to a friend of his named Franz who has been helping him before traveling to South Dakota. Franz and McCandless share a father-son bond, which McCandless never had with his biological father. In the letter, he states, “The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun” (Krakauer 57). McCandless seeks comfort in the nature surrounding him; therefore, he replaces God and religion with nature and adventure. The Pilgrims and Natives; however, find joy in God and worship and achieve stability through this. It is clear McCandless does not feel the same way when he says that “there’s no greater joy” than traveling (Krakauer 33). Unlike the relationship with God and worship in colonial ages, today’s era explores a rather more personal relationship with one’s self and individual happiness. This idea is further explored when McCandless relates and compares a man's spirit to his happiness. Another example of McCandless turning from faith is when he states, “It is true that I miss intelligent companionship, but there are so few with whom I can share the things that mean so much to me that I have learned to contain myself. It is enough that I am surrounded with beauty” (Krakauer 91). He is finding stability through nature’s beauty instead of religion. He is content with being surrounded by nature instead of faith. McCandless values faith in others and the natural environment rather than religion and the importance of self-reliance and independence, contrary to the very religious Natives. Therefore, throughout the course of history, the American values of religion and faith has evolved.

Because time has changed the values of America so greatly, stances on reliance on religion and independency are presented antithetically to each another. Historic America appreciated the values of religion and a need for community, which is seen when the Natives feasted together and praised God for providing them with food and keeping them safe. In contrast, in the book Into the Wild, McCandless values stability in nature and wants to be self-reliant. Values such as these are shown to have drastically deteriorated throughout history. One might wonder what will be left of humanity in the future and what values, if any, will still remain.