On Plymouth Plantation, William Bradford sometimes mention Natives, mainly in the assistance of Puritans. Bradford claims that they were joyful because of finding a new land to practice their religion freely. However, according to his account, Natives were savage and brutish. He goes even further to call them ".... cruel, barbarious and most treacherous".
The contradiction arises from Bradford's next description of Squanto people. The author writes that they helped them, assisted them is many issues, like fishing and profiting. Bradford praises their help which he attributes to God.
Although the two descriptions contradict each other, Bardford praises the help of Squanto people. In overall, it could be rather interesting to investigate further why the author criticized Natives harshly on Plymouth Plantation.
After landing in the New World and beginning the settlement of Plymouth Plantation, the Puritans faced the harsh reality that they were not as prepared for the harsh wilderness like they had imagined. Over half of their company died and more were falling ill daily until “a certain Indian came boldly amongst them and spoke to them in broken English” (26). It was at this point, that the Puritans and the Indians joined forces, creating terms of peace with the Natives (27). The Indians expressed great kindness to the Puritans, coming to live with them where they served as “their interpreter” and “directed [the Puritans] [of] how to set their corn, where to take fish, and to procure other commodities” (27). After this encounter with the Indians, Bradford’s depiction of them changes. He does not talk about them in a particularly positive light, but he no longer speaks of them negatively either; however, it is clear that the Indian’s involvement in Plymouth Plantation led to the success and survival of the colony whether Bradford directly says so or not.
