Opinion: The European Settlers would not have survived if the Americas were in fact a vast expanse of “pristine wilderness”
In the section entitled “Myth of the Pristine Wilderness”, Dunbar-Ortiz discusses the belief, similar to that expressed by Locke in the last reading, that the Americas were a vast landscape of untamed wilderness waiting for the colonizers to come cultivate them. While many European historians and settlers depicted the Americas in this way, that was never the case. Dunbar-Ortiz continues to explain that had North America been a land of pristine wilderness, it might still be today. She includes a quote by historian Francis Jennings, who described the Europeans of the time as “incapable of conquering true wilderness” but “highly competent in the skill of conquering other people”.
While Jennings mentions that European nations did not have the technology, resources, or organization necessary to maintain a colony from such a distance, one does not need to make any assumptions based on the abilities of the European colonial powers of the period. Records of sophisticated Native American settlements exist in many forms, from both Native and European perspectives. In 1605, Samuel de Champlain, the well-known French explorer and cartographer, sailed by the site that would later become the Plymouth colony. He described the region as eminently inhabitable. He even drew a map of the region, which showed a series of Native towns and fields. Not long after, John Smith described the New England region as a “paradise of all parts”. Both accounts directly contradict any assumption of divine intervention saving the colonists.
One must also consider the colonies that failed because they did not have any help from the surrounding Native population. The lost colonies of Roanoke and Popham epitomize what happened when the European settlers lacked knowledge of the land and cooperation from the Natives. The Jamestown settlement also suffered dearly, and may not have survived at all had it not been for the timely arrival of an English supply ship.
The evidence presented above, in addition to the information discussed in Dunbar-Ortiz’s piece, makes it near impossible to support the “Myth of the Pristine Wilderness” in the modern day. It is just that; a myth. The few early settlements that survived would not have done so without the Native Americans previously inhabiting and working the land they settled. Later settlers continued to use the gifts left behind by Natives that had been forced off of their land, as well as the lessons learned by previous failed settlements. As Jennings stated, when the Europeans founded American colonies, they did not conquer land, they conquered a people. Teaching anything to the contrary in the modern day is not only irresponsible but also dangerous. A misunderstanding of the nation’s history leads to the formation of misinformed opinions about its present and future. The same “altruistic” and divine justification of 17th century colonialism continues to fuel modern American interference and imperialism, which Dunbar-Ortiz briefly discusses in the section entitled “The Calvinist Origin Story”. Teachers, historians, and citizens in general must stop promoting this skewed and inaccurate view of American history in order for us to properly analyze the current state of America.
Citations
Andrews, Evan. “The Lost Colony of Popham.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 12 May 2017, https://www.history.com/news/the-lost-colony-of-popham.
Dunbar-Ortiz, Roxanne. “Cult of the Covenant.” An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States, Beacon Press, 2014, pp. 45–51.
Lumen Learning. “English Settlements in America.” US History I (OS Collection), OER Services, Dec. 2019, https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-ushistory1os2xmaster/chapter/english-settlements-in-america/.
Mancall, Peter C. “Why the Pilgrims Were Actually Able to Survive.” The Conversation, The Conversation US, Inc., 25 Nov. 2019, http://theconversation.com/why-the-pilgrims-were-actually-able-to-survive-106990.
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