Difference between revisions of "HIST 131--Week 3 Questions/Comments"

In the Arabella Sermon by John Winthrop, there is an entire paragraph telling the people that they have to untied in order to survive in the new world. Which I think makes a lot of sense. When we look at the Jamestown example we see that they were really not united as they all were trying to reach their own goals. Does anyone think that Jamestown would have turned out better or differently if the colonists had not been so selfishly pursuing wealth?--Melissa Brokaw

In the Arabella Sermon by John Winthrop, there is an entire paragraph telling the people that they have to untied in order to survive in the new world. Which I think makes a lot of sense. When we look at the Jamestown example we see that they were really not united as they all were trying to reach their own goals. Does anyone think that Jamestown would have turned out better or differently if the colonists had not been so selfishly pursuing wealth?--Melissa Brokaw

In response to Melissa Brokaw's question of Jamestown turning out differently if the colonists had not been so selfishly pursuing wealth, it may have turned out differently, however there were still different circumstances that faced each of the colonies.  The New Englanders were lucky in that most of the Indian population around the water was wiped out before they got there as it saved them from direct warfare in the beginning.  They also knew how to plant and grow different crops to suit their individual needs.  The Jamestown settlement was unlucky in that they encountered an Indian attack on the first night in America.  However, they also needed the corn and such the Indians provided to survive which made it difficult to continue a process of wiping out the tribes.  The Indians knew that the colonists needed them to survive whereas the Indians in the New England area knew that the Puritans and Pilgrims could survive on their own with little help.  It was also beneficial to the New Englanders that they had ready-made homes built by a tribe that had died out from disease.  It saved them from completely freezing out the first winter of their settlement as building many houses that could withstand the cold within a short time period was unlikely.  The Jamestown colonists had to build their own houses, as well as create ways of protecting their settlement against Indian attacks.  These are just a few of the reasons why the the Puritan and Pilgrim colonies may have had a better chance of succeeding over the Jamestown colony.  They had skills already needed to survive, and had bits of luck to help them out along the way.  It wasn't just a factor that the Jamestown colonists looking for more money, it was also that they did not have little bits of luck along the way.  - Alex Zelin

In response to Melissa Brokaw's question of Jamestown turning out differently if the colonists had not been so selfishly pursuing wealth, it may have turned out differently, however there were still different circumstances that faced each of the colonies.  The New Englanders were lucky in that most of the Indian population around the water was wiped out before they got there as it saved them from direct warfare in the beginning.  They also knew how to plant and grow different crops to suit their individual needs.  The Jamestown settlement was unlucky in that they encountered an Indian attack on the first night in America.  However, they also needed the corn and such the Indians provided to survive which made it difficult to continue a process of wiping out the tribes.  The Indians knew that the colonists needed them to survive whereas the Indians in the New England area knew that the Puritans and Pilgrims could survive on their own with little help.  It was also beneficial to the New Englanders that they had ready-made homes built by a tribe that had died out from disease.  It saved them from completely freezing out the first winter of their settlement as building many houses that could withstand the cold within a short time period was unlikely.  The Jamestown colonists had to build their own houses, as well as create ways of protecting their settlement against Indian attacks.  These are just a few of the reasons why the the Puritan and Pilgrim colonies may have had a better chance of succeeding over the Jamestown colony.  They had skills already needed to survive, and had bits of luck to help them out along the way.  It wasn't just a factor that the Jamestown colonists looking for more money, it was also that they did not have little bits of luck along the way.  - Alex Zelin