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The Well-Known Story Of Pocahontas And Captain John Smith

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Have you ever heard of the well-known story of Pocahontas and Captain John Smith, which has many adaptations? It is the story of how a Native American princess, Pocahontas, saved Captain John Smith's life. Pocahontas was the daughter of Chief Powhatan, who had much power and influence in the surrounding areas. John Smith was in charge of the ship that came to Virginia to colonize it, and later, the promotion of the colonization of Virginia to the common man. Smith was taken hostage by the chief and was about to be killed when Pocahontas interfered and saved him. That is the story that was told by John Smith. However, many historians believe that John Smith misunderstood the actions of Pocahontas and the truth is that she never did anything …show more content…

It would be unreasonable for the chief to suddenly attempt to kill John Smith for no reason if he did not do anything. According to "True Relation" by John Smith (1608), it says, "Arriving in Werowocomoco, the emperor welcomed me with good words and great platters of food. He promised me friendship and freedom within 4 days. From another section in the reading, it states ¨He promised to give me what I wanted and feed us if we made him hatchets and copper. I promised to do this. And so with all this kindness, he sent me home.¨ According to General History by John Smith (1624), it says ¨Two days later, Powhatan met John Smith and said they were friends.¨ In all three excerpts, John Smith himself states that the chief had been friendly to him. In A True Relation, the tribe leader almost immediately welcomed him with words of friendship and food enough to feed his entire crew. He can see that Powhatan wanted to be on friendly terms with the captain and his crew. According to General History, it seems that the chief himself came to John Smith and told him that they were friends, showing how much the chief respects John Smith. The tribe was also known to be generally neutral to others as well. It would be illogical for the chief and his tribe to attack John Smith if he did nothing to them in the first …show more content…

According to ¨The American Dream of John Smith¨ it said that ¨John Smith had no reason to lie. In all of his other writings, he is very accurate and observant. For 250 years after his captivity, no one has questioned his story.¨ This tells us that he is trustworthy because he has told the truth before. However, he has an ulterior motive this time. Smith aimed to promote Virginia as a desirable location and attract settlers. However, it is common for people to fabricate information when trying to persuade other people. A significant hole is in John Smith´s story. Despite being saved by Pocahontas, Smith fails to explain the tribe's aggression towards him and his crew. He also does not tell why Pocahontas deemed him important enough to be saved. This should raise questions about the truthfulness of his story. John Smith's trustworthiness should be questioned as evidence suggests that he may have made up some parts of his story, which goes against the claim that we should trust Smith just because he was accurate in the

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Very rarely did she state that something was true or accurate, almost always she kept things real and said that it was possible, or could 've happened. With the very little information the world actually has on Pocahontas, it is hard to know exactly how she felt. Many times the book states that she did not really write things down. Much of the information that was included in this book is from many of the Englishmen’s writings, journals, diaries, etc. Some of the information is even hear-say.

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Evidence "Smith records an unsuccessful attempt to trade goods for corn with the Indians'' (Shelter paragraph 20). The Indians have had some pressure put on them because they had to feed 2 populations to keep the colonists from getting irritated and killing some of the Indians. In "Rethinking Jamestown '', the text explains how some colonists were criticized for "poor planning, poor support" (Shelter paragraph 21). In this case, it seems that the social factors needed to be worked on more efficiently because of the miscommunication between the Indians and the colonists.

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Throughout history cultures have clashed many times. Whether it be because of land, industrialization, or race people have always found reasons to disagree with one another. John Smith’s writing “The General History of Virginia” shows a dominant culture coming in contact with a less developed culture, dehumanizing them and uplifted John Smith in order to take control of the people. Smith, an influential member of society and founder of Jamestown, wrote his text in 1624, seventeen years after the events had occurred. He is also known to have embellished his story to make himself appear more substantial.

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Most likely, one has heard about the story of Pocahontas and John Smith. However, John Smith was not as loving and kind as he was portrayed. In the letter Address to Captain Smith, the speaker, Chief Powhatan, Pocahontas’ father, takes a condescending tone and addresses to the English settlers, especially John Smith, how the chief’s generous hospitality has not been appreciated. Literary devices such as rhetorical questions, antithesis, and repetition, diction, and pathos and ethos are exercised by Chief Powhatan to address his purpose and produce it as impactful as fully possible.

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The author goes on to debate what Pocahontas actually felt in her relationship with John Smith and how she most likely did not reciprocate the feelings he claimed she had. This may be new information to the reader and provides historical difference of the real Pocahontas from the Hollywood version while strengthening Townsend’s argument. Also, the author does not use challenging language in her own writing. She keeps her own wording basic as to give the readers a break from the difficultness of the old language. Another positive aspect of this book is the notes section and the preface.

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And whispers started, neighbors telling neighbors how Smith said the new people were kind and hospitable to him. How Smith said the new people treated him to their delicacies and provided him with provisions on his journeys. How Smith said the new people were respectful, helpful, and friendly. Smith writes about Chief Powhatan of the Powhatan Nation, "He kindly welcomed me with such good words and great platters of sundry victuals, assuring me his friendship and my Liberty in four days... Having all the kindness he could devise, sought to content me, he sent me home with four men: one that usually carried my gown and knapsack after me, two loaded with bread, and one to accompany me."

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