An Overview of Roanoke: The Abandoned Colony by Karen Ordahl Kupperman - Book Report/Review Example

An Overview of Roanoke: The Abandoned Colony This book written by historian Karen Ordahl Kupperman chronicled the events surrounding the historical controversy and mystery of the lost colony: Roanoke Island. It is what is now known as the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Before it became a United States territory, this island saw the dramatic struggles among the Indians who lived there, the colonists who were displaced from England, and the leaders of the expeditions who attempted to colonize the island in the 16th century. Outlining the events and more importantly describing the personalities involved in the expeditions to widen the influence of England, the book had one solid claim: that the efforts to colonize the island were from the very beginning bound to fail. At the time, the trend was for the leading nations of the globe to use their clout to enrich themselves through colonization. They vied for wealth and power. England, who eventually prevailed over Spain by defeating the Spanish Armada, failed twice to establish a settlement in Roanoke Island. How was this possible The last established settlement even disappeared without a trace. As to what happened, why or how, herein lies the controversy. Despite numerous studies and advances in information technology, most Americans are in the dark when it comes to this chapter of history. This is precisely what brings relevance to Kupperman's Roanoke: The Abandoned Colony. The book tells the story of the time in a novel-like fashion. Through academic efforts such as this, former misconceptions and inaccurate characterizations attached to race are dispelled resulting in greater understanding of the lives of early Americans and their crucial role in the formation of this country. Until recently discussion of colonial history rarely centered on Indian social and political structure. Indians or Native Americans used to remain in the background of the grand drama but not anymore. Reading this book from cover to cover should break one's inaccurate or simplistic views of the Indians' way of life and their reception of the colonists. Not only that, Kupperman's Roanoke gave equal emphasis to the prominent figures of the Elizabethan era. The author also provides some logical explanations as to what went wrong then. What were the pitfalls of the plan The subtitle the Abandoned Colony appropriately sums up the fate of the expeditions and the failure of their mission. In the book, Kupperman calls Roanoke a "twice-forgotten" colony and one that has been ignored by Americans today. To fully understand the subject of the book, it is necessary to take a step back and review history. In 1584, England, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I undertook an enterprise to colonize America with the goal of establishing a permanent settlement for the powerful empire to occupy and enjoy. Sir Walter Ralegh, who shared this dream and had the means to make it possible, was the first man to finance and organize such a venture. He was a young wealthy man who had the confidence of the queen; When the idea came up, he was said to be very hopeful. However, the first expedition meant to be the first to "plant the greatness of England" lasted less than a year. Even then, the English were confident that it would eventually succeed. Thus they tried something new. The final wave of colonists consisted of families, which showed greater chances of assimilating into the new territory. It enjoyed the financial support of a corporation and yet, it still failed. In fact, the colonists were never again seen. Kupperman, like other historians, offers many interesting insights to this. She has subtly characterized the enterprise as too ambitious to be realistic. She contends that it was undertaken without clear goals; Those who backed the project had different and even conflicting expectations. Some supported the project to enrich themselves. Some saw it as a military outpost. She clarifies though that this does not by all means render the first attempt to colonize America insignificant. If the expectations were not as grand as they were, none would have attempted such an expensive endeavor. She considers the colonization of Roanoke as an important first step, which in a way served as a model for the other English plantations that followed. Painting the historical figures as bold, vainglorious, to a certain extent naive and yet patriotic, she emphasizes as well that this ambitious project was done for love of country. The most powerful adversary of England at the time was Spain whose immense wealth was thanks to its plantations in America. Fittingly, Kupperman includes this historical context in her analysis. In the 16th Century, colonization and global supremacy were the foremost goals of the two nations who had the resources to achieve these. Another factor that elevated the conflict between the two superpowers was religion. Both England and Spain, which were the strongholds of the Protestant and Catholic Church respectively, believed that they had the blessings of a Supreme Being turning their battles into more just than a fight for power. It was for love of God as well; It was emotional. When difficulties within England and within the colony emerged though - not to mention the war with Spain broke out - the interests of the colonists in Roanoke easily became secondary in importance. England had its hands full protecting itself against Spanish attacks. At some point supplies got more scarce on Roanoke, which meant the colonists had to live off the island. Kupperman points out one move which would have changed the fate of the colonists. There was an attempt to send much-needed supplies to Roanoke. Unfortunately, Queen Elizabeth I gave orders for the ship to set out for another destination. Newfoundland had to be warned of the fact that Spain had seized all English ships in Spanish harbors. Apart from being of lesser priority in terms of national goals, another problem of this enterprise which had a lot of potential for profit making was privateering. Privateering in which privately owned ships set sail to capture enemy vessels later fell in the control of merchants. Kupperman in this book touches a great deal on how businessmen who had their own prosperity in mind influenced the fate of the already vulnerable settlement in Roanoke Island. These ships who sailed for several objectives had the blessings of the government because this way, public and private interests were supposedly met. The pitfall was that between making profit and ensuring the stability of the settlement, the former was always given priority. Those who had interests other than business were the ones who had the greatest understanding of the Roanoke colonists and the Indians. English scholars such as Thomas Harriot made genuine attempts to learn the language of the Carolina Algonquian through the two Indians they brought to England. The partnership of Thomas Harriot and John White resulted in the gathering useful information and illustrations as well as detailed surveys of the North Carolina area which were to be basis for future plans and expeditions. Harriot strove to study the Indian's language (that of the tribe, Algonquian) as well as their religion. He believed that if the Indians were somehow able to relate to the colonists, the English would be received with less resistance. At this point, they have already concluded that it was necessary for them to co-exist peaceably with the people whose territory they wish to control. Harriot was a scientist and a linguist; His work on the Roanoke has been very significant in the attempts to understand it today. As much as the author describes the personalities surrounding the enterprise, their motivations and the war that was in progress at the time, she also discusses in detail the characteristics of the Indian communities in Roanoke that awaited the foreigners. They were not by all means simple nor backward. Each of the tribes were well-organized; Their communities possessing the same qualities as those of the English. Theirs were societies with hierarchies, which can be determined by the arrangement of their houses - the most prominent ones built at the heart of the village. Although, the primary means of living was hunting, these Indian communities were not nomadic. The most interesting trait they possess, which the book likewise hints on, was that the Indians themselves were well-versed in the game of politics and deceit. Seeing the natives of the island in this light will show that any attempt to put them under submission, and establish foreign settlements, which Kupperman describes as "parasitic" will be met with equally strategic counteraction. All this information is not simply outlined. The characters involved comes to life in the book, which is one of its most striking feature. The story is far from being a mere enumeration of the events. The writer has used elements of story telling in order to fully capture the period of time. It is a history book, yes, but it sounds less like a tiresome lecture on the history of America and more like a story of peoples who showed courage in the face of miscalculated and haphazard attempts to own their territory and take what they have. It is a story too about the sometimes patriotic, sometimes profit-oriented men and women of England under the rule of Queen Elizabeth I who made the bold move of planting settlements in America. It is clear that the objective of the book is not only to shed light to what really transpired in 1584 and onwards. The writer has likewise made a commendable effort to make the information more accessible, more understandable and more appealing to Americans today. Much of the evidence that has allowed Americans to uncover the details was thanks to the publications of an Englishman, Richard Hakluyt, who in a way glorified the explorations of the 16th century. Critics of the book have however accused the author of not offering something new. Some have said it has failed to set itself apart from David Quinn Beer's Set Fair for Roanoke (Sause 16). Kupperman herself recognizes the contribution of the former to her work. She has acknowledged the assistance of her peers and colleagues, who also shared with her their discoveries and findings. The accounts in the book are products of their diligent work on the history of Roanoke. The book is a concise and detailed resource for anyone who is interested in the learning the beginnings of America. Karen Ordahl Kupperman is a noted historian and professor at New York University (NYU), who has written several books, textbooks, articles and reviews on the subject. Among those who have studied the beginnings of America, she and David Beers Quinn have done the most research on the settlements on Roanoke Island (Sause 50). Her early works, for instance the Settling With the Indians: The Meeting of English and Indian Cultures in America, dealt with the English perception of Indians. Perhaps the most important point that can be gleaned through Roanoke: The Abandoned Colony and one that may be applied to other studies as well is that history has never been just a series of events occurring one after the other. It is rather a single story -- in a way very complex and in a way very simple -- whose twists and turns are determined by peoples' needs, personalities and conflicting interests. Understanding how the human race has always been is understanding what it might be in the years to come. Work Cited Kupperman, Karen Ordahl. Roanoke, the Abandoned Colony. Totowa, New Jersey: Rowman & Allanheld, 1984. Sause, Karen. "Roanoke: The Past through the Present." Concept. 24 Apr. 2008. 1 Dec. 2008 Read More