william apess a son of the forest quotes

However, dogged by alcoholism and with an increasing sense of injustice at white treatment of Natives, he gradually lost the respect in which he had been held, with even Mashpee groups distancing themselves from him. This led to the so-called Mashpee Revolt - in reality a peaceful protest by Natives lead by Apess, which was met with threats of military force by the State Governor Levi Lincoln, Jr.ĭuring the period 1831-1836, Apess published several sermons, and became known as a powerful speaker.

In 1833, following a visit to the town of Mashpee, the largest Native town in Massachusetts, Apess became convinced that the State was acting illegally in denying the Mashpees self-government. It uses the format of the spiritual confession to ironically comment on white prejudices about Natives.Īs was the Methodist practice of the day, Apess and his family became itinerants, preaching in meetings all over New England to mixed congregations that would have included Native, Euro-American and African-American worshippers. Written at least partly in reaction to advocates of Indian Removal, including President-to-be Andrew Jackson, this autobiography was the first wholly Native-authored book to be published. In the same year he published A Son of the Forest: The Experience of William Apess, A Native of the Forest, Comprising a Notice of the Pequod Tribe of Indians, Written by Himself, his autobiography. During this period he became ever more convinced of a vocation to preach, and in 1829 he was ordained as a Methodist minister. Only in 1840 were they able to finally banish him from their lands and from their cherished Meetinghouse.In 1821, Apess married Mary Wood, and the couple went on to have three children. This paper explores the several resourceful and non-violent methods through which the Wampanoag sought to remove the defiant clergyman. Therefore, on top of trying to navigate the intricacies of autonomous governance, the first six years of the District of Mashpee’s existence were also marked by repeated attempts on a variety of fronts to get rid of the minister. Yet, as abundant as their complaints against the missionary Phineas Fish had been, the Massachusetts Legislature failed to address the issue in drafting its bill. The Wampanoag’s grievances had been not only political and economic, but also religious. Within the context of Jacksonian America and of the general devastation of indigenous societies at the time, this was a significant, if minor victory. Following a short and largely non-violent 'revolt,' and following negotiations held mostly through public discourse, the State of Massachusetts granted Mashpee a certain amount of political autonomy in 1834. Led by William Apess, a Methodist preacher of mixed Pequot origins, the Wampanoag of Mashpee, on Cape Cod, rebelled against their encroaching neighbours, their indifferent state-appointed overseers, and their indolent Harvard-appointed missionary in 1833. The book evokes en passant the discrimination he had to face within the White community and within the Church because of his deemed inferior background. His autobiography describes the writer’s suffering inside his native society and his escape from that situation thanks to the intervention of “white” people. He does not only write about himself, but about the experiences and accomplishments of all the Native American people. In his autobiography, William Apess tells his life story as an ‘Indian’ raised by White Christian people. To start with, I will give a brief inroduction about both Oral and written Native American literature, then I will proceed to define the typical characteristics of Native American Autobiography. To pave the way to that, I will give an overview of the author’s life, because knowing about his life journey can help us understand better his work.

I intend to highlight the different relationships that the writer presented in his book to show their importance for him as someone who is situated between the American Indian and the White societies. In this paper, I intend to deal with William Apess’s autobiography, A Son of the Forest.

William apess a son of the forest quotes