John Smith\'s Account of Jamestown

John Smith's account of Jamestown has come under attack on several occasions but so has everything Smith ever wrote concerning his voyages. Smith is credited for the discovery of life in the wilderness that resulted in first permanent English Speaking settlement in the New World. Upon his return to England, he wrote about Virginia and explained that in this wilderness exist life but people are more secular and materialistic than committed to God. It must be noted here that in those days when English settlers came to various places and decided to establish colonies there, their main purpose was trade. But trade was certainly not the only purpose. Many of them actually were interested in spreading Christianity and thus they came to places where Christianity was wane or absent. His motives and aspirations could thus be similar. We do not know if Smith was a missionary as well. But it appears that his exploration of the area gave him a clear idea of the lack of god in the lives of the natives. Smith's other purpose could have been to do trade but various historian records appear to highlight his noble spirit. It would be wrong to assume that Jamestown settlers were secular and materialistic but it can be said that people in those area were not religious and thus English settlers wanted to spread Christianity in that area.

Rip Van Winkle is an interesting tale of a man's disappearance that results in his waking up after a hiatus of 20 years. Winkle wakes up to a completely different world than the one he had left behind and becomes a symbol of the old world. The unfortunate marriage of Winkle to Dame was the main reason why he sought solace. The refuge came in the form of a 20 yearlong sleep. His nagging wife is his only real misery. Everyone else seems to admire Rip for his simple nature and honest character. However his wife cannot see these qualities and this leads to disharmony at home causing Rip Van Winkle to go to a jungle, drink some strange beverage and fall asleep for two decades.

When he wakes up the world he left is no longer a domain of George III but has become part of American federation. Now Winkle becomes a sign of old world for everyone and people listen to his story with great interest. Winkle was initially disoriented because of the loss of his old world but gradually realizes the beauty of this world where no nagging wife existed. He was not concerned about the larger politics. He was only happy about deliverance from "petticoat government"; a form of government he had endured for many years before he fell asleep.