The English settlers refer to the native peoples as "savages," which, of course, made me think of our discussion of "savage" and "civilized" in relation to Oroonoko during last class. At one point, one of the tribe members who speaks English visits the English settlers in order to get a sense of why they are there. When he leaves, one of the colonists tells the other colonists not to be fooled by the "civilized savage" - because the "savage" could speak English, and was well-mannered in the colonists' company, he was considered "civilized." As we've seen in Oroonoko, these native peoples are only seen as civilized if they exhibit English characteristics.
Anyway, I thought it was interesting, and wanted to share that with you all. The videos (follow the link above) are worth checking out, if you're interested. Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving!
Hey Hannah! That is definitely interesting that you found that so close after we just started talking about the meaning of the word savage. It's sad to think that one way of thinking was so arrogantly brought over to the new world and judgement was passed on by the very people who by definition were savages themselves. The most interesting thing about this to me is how the one colonist had to point out not to be "fooled" by the civilized savage, as if he had already been afraid about that possibility. I wonder what could have he been afraid of? Honestly I hate how freely the term is used, and it was freely used too often back during this time in my opinion. It's more of a savage act to judge one so harshly rather to live ones live not as prosperously as someone else.
ReplyDeleteGirl!! I have been watching History Channel's Vikings (a must watch, by the way) and can make a connection as well. The main characters are Vikings (big surprise) and while they're thought of as savages and pagans, they have their own ordered society. The "civilized Christians," The English, are just as insane, particularly their king. It goes to show that the definition of "civilized" depends on whose telling the story!
ReplyDelete