Of Plymouth Plantation Reading Guide Ans.

1. Sept. 1620
2. Nov. 11, 1620
3. A “beating at sea” furious, perilous, and miserable
4. The Pilgrims’ present condition was being “weatherbeaten” from a “long beating at sea”
and now, having made land, there was still ‘no rest for the weary.’ There were no “inns,”
“houses,” “friends,” or aid for these weakened people.

5. Allusion to Paul and the barbarians of Malta: the Puritans were not as lucky as the Apostle
Paul because the Native Americans wanted to kill the pilgrims unlike the kind barbarians of
Malta who received Paul

Allusion to Pisgah: Though Moses would never be allowed to enter the Promised Land, he and
the Israelites gained hope from being able to climb Mt. Pisgah and at least SEE the Promised
Land. The pilgrims, however, couldn’t even do that. On the shore, all they could see was the
dark, threatening forest and the furious ocean.

6. They felt that the NA’s were “wild men” and “savage barbarians” and that the land was
“hideous and desolate,” “wild and savage,” “dangerous,” “sharp, violent, cruel, and
fierce.”
The Pilgrims believed that nature was SINFUL.
The Pilgrims “believed that the virgin forest was the Devil’s last preserve, his home base
and the citadel of his final stand, the last place on earth that was not paying homage to
God. They had to fight the land like heroes for every grain of corn” (Arthur Miller, The
Crucible, 167).
7. The Pilgrims are described as being caught between the savage forest full of “wild beasts
and wild men” and the “vast and furious ocean” which was “the main bar and gulf to all
the civilized parts of the world.”
8. To find a place for “habitation,” to find a place to live.
9. Shallop: like a rowboat, can go in shallow water; the shallop was “bruised and shattered”
from the storms at sea
10. The Pilgrims “brought away” “corn and beans.” They took (stole) the food from the NA
with the intention of paying them back “give full satisfaction” “which they did.” That
the Pilgrims attribute the seeds to God’s providence, reveals that they believe that the
NA’s would not/could not have given the Puritans the food themselves because the NA’s
weren’t Christians and had no indwelling of the Holy Spirit. God forced the evil
unconverted NA’s to help the Puritans.
11. Barricado -a little lean-to fort, very temporary not like the picture on p. 84; while
intended as DEFENSE, the NA perceived it as an OFFENSIVE measure
12. They thought it was wolves, but it was really NA’s communicating non-verbally and so
the Puritans, not being familiar with that type of communication, didn’t associate the
noise with humans.
13. The NA’s attacked first, the Puritans returned fire. That no Puritans were harmed
fostered their belief that God was on their side and against the NA.
14. The Starving Time; half the people died leaving about 50, many of which were children
15. & 16 surprise: they spoke English
Samoset appears on Mar. 16 speaking broken English
Chief (Sachem) Massasoit leader
& Squanto the last of his tribe, he speaks fluent English learned from French
Canadian fur trappers, and he chooses to remain with the Pilgrims, teaching them,
for the rest of his life.
17. A peace made between the NA and the Pilgrims
18. We’ll come back to this
19. Small, but with hunting, and a successful second harvest season, they began to do well.
Thanksgiving did NOT occur the first Nov. or even the second Nov. they were there.
20. Abundant, but supply fell off with over-hunting and urbanization
21. Wild game, corn, turkey, fish,
22. &23: the Pilgrims were able to tell their friends and families that they were doing well,
and they really were, they weren’t just telling a white lie to make families worry less