The comparison of the film New World and John Smith’s book The General

THE NEW WORLD AND JOHN SMITH’S BOOK 5

Thecomparison of the film NewWorldand John Smith’s book TheGeneral Histoire of Virginia, and the summer isles

Thecomparison of the film NewWorldand John Smith’s book TheGeneral History of Virginia, and the summer isles

Briefanalysis of the authors and film events

Themovie, The New World is mostly inspired by historical figures such asCaptain John Smith and Pocahontas. As the film starts, Pocahontas, a12-year old girl who is very audacious and high spirited is depictedto be viewing the arrival and docking of three ships. Pocahontas’father is Chief Powhatan who is very powerful in the area. The shipshave docked to deliver Captain John Smith who is under arrest and isfacing a death penalty due to his seditious statements. From thefilm, Captain John Smith is freed by Captain Newport Christopher andtasked with executing various expedition activities. However, theexpedition activities are hampered by shortages of importantsupplies, strange diseases, and famine forcing the crew led byCaptain John Smith to seek for more supplies and possible trade withthe local community.

Inthe course of the expedition activities, Smith is captured by theNative American local community but is later saved by Pocahontas.Smith is slowly integrated into the ways of the community and isobliged to learn the new ways of the natives. In the process ofintegration and assimilation, Captain Smith falls in love withPocahontas, and this angers her father, Chief Powhatan. Consequently,Chief Powhatan issues an order demanding that every capturedEnglishman should be allowed to return when their ships arrive. Outof love and humility, Pocahontas secretly supplies the crew withfood, water, and clothes against her father’s wishes and isultimately banished from the tribe. Pocahontas later convert toChristianity and accept other British ways of life and traditions.

Similarly,the book General History of Virginia, New-England and the SummerIsles starts with an explicit narration of the capture of CaptainSmith by the Algonquin Indians (Smith &amp Smith, 2006). In thebook, Smith is also rescued by Pocahontas from being slain alongRiver Chickahominy. According to the book, the capture of CaptainSmith and the crew takes place after their canoe failed to navigate asection of the river forcing them to trek. The book further depictsPocahontas to be supplying the crew with food and other criticalsupplies.

Universalthemes, conflicts, and climaxes

Overall,the two literary illustrations the film and the book chapter analysisexplicitly describe various life events of Captain Smith who is aBritish Voyager and missionary expediting the Native Americansocieties. The two literary accounts further represent variousuniversal themes, conflicts, and climaxes. For instance, the idea oflove is very evident in the movie and the book from Captain Smith’srelation with Pocahontas (Smith &amp Smith, 2006).

Inthe book, as a sign of deep and intense love, Pocahontas offers herhead to be smashed together with Smith with the aim of saving him.Another important universal theme portrayed in the film and book isChristianity religion. In both literary accounts, the expedition crewis painted as Christian missionaries whose primary message is that ofpeaceful coexistence and harmony (Smith &amp Smith, 2006).Christianity as a theme is further evident when Pocahontas isconverted to Christian ways of life and subjective beliefs. BothSmith and Pocahontas are portrayed in both the film and book as veryspiritual from the way they regularly pray when faced with varioussituations that are challenging.

Captivityis also another universal theme that is evident from both literaryaccounts. For instance, in both accounts, Smith is captured onseparate occasions due to his perceived rebellious attitude towardsthe state (Smith &amp Smith, 2006). Similarly, Smith and the creware taken into captivity by Chief Powhatan as they walk along RiverChickahominy. The theme of death is also depicted when Pocahontas wasinformed that Smith is dead leaving her utterly distressed andmiserable. Additionally, the eventual death of Pocahontas leaves JohnRolfe and the son completely shattered. Death as a theme in the twoliterary accounts aims at illustrating the impact of death in asocial system (Smith &amp Smith, 2006).

Thecentral conflict from both literary accounts is captured from whenafter being misinformed that Smith is dead, Pocahontas decides tomarry John Rolfe (Smith &amp Smith, 2006). John Rolfe is Smith’srival who also plays a significant role in the formation of Jamestownand Virginia. Similarly, the information on how and why the shipscarrying Captain Smith docked is conflicting. A great climax to boththe film and the reading is when Pocahontas decides to offer her headto be chopped together with Smith as a show of love.

Theaccomplishment of the purpose of both the film and the reading

Thefilm and the text accomplish its primary goal which is to expresspertinent information about the formation and development of Virginiaand Jamestown (Smith &amp Smith, 2006). Correspondingly, both thefilm and the reading aimed at illustrating how the Native Americansand European explorers and missionaries related. The two accountsfurther ascertain the start and spread of Christianity religion inAmerica. However, the message is clearly portrayed in the film withevery scene comprehensively covered and analyzed (Smith &amp Smith,2006). The movie is also easier to comprehend with the visual andaudio features compared to the reading which is undeniably hard toconceptualize.

References

Smith,J., &amp Smith, J. (2006).&nbspThegenerall historie of Virginia, New-England, &amp the Summer Isles.Bedford, MA: Applewood Books.