The Last of the Mohicans Essay -- Native Americans James Fenimore Coop

The Last of the MohicansJames Fenimore Coopers the Last of the Mohicans is a captivating novel thatdepicts the travel of 7 people through the dangerous woods of western New Yorkin the late 18th century. The story takes place during the French and Indian war atthe height of conflict. Major Duncan Heyward is accompanying singer DavidGamut and the two daughters of the English colonel Munro from Fort Edward toFort William Henry. Along the way, the four travelers mark that their Indianguide Magua has purposely lead them in the wrong direction. Their only chance ofmaking it to Fort William Henry now rests in the hands of peddle Eye (a man whoknows the way of the Indians but continuously asserts that he has no Indian blood) and Uncas and Chingachgook (the only two living members of the oncegreat tribe know as Mohican). Together, the group sneaks through the woodsavoiding the French troops as well as the dangerous Hurons who have formed analliance with the French.The withstand is full of adventure. Earlier in the book, the travelers stop tospend the night in a cave near a waterfall, but they argon attacked by Maguas alliesthe Hurons. Hawkeye and the Mohicans managed to escape down the river butHeyward, Gamut, and the Munro sisters are all taken as prisoners by the Hurons.Magua then tells the group that he seeks revenge on colonel Munro. But before hehad the chance to act, Hawkeye and the Mohicans attacked the Hurons and cleanupedall but Magua who managed to escape.Although the book had a fictitious spin, a little research shows me that theevents and certain characters are more or less historically accurate. One occasionwas the Massacre of William Henry. Once the travelers arrived at their destination,they learned that the fort was receiving no more troops and would be forced thesurrender to General Montcalm and the French. Montcalm told Fort WilliamHenry that he would allow them to leave with all their belongings, without a fight.However, once the party left the f ort, they were surrounded and more or less everyonewas killed. The Munro sisters and David were once again captured by Magua.The book overly discusses the alliances between Europeans and Indians. TheFrench and English were quick to make friends with the Indians because theyknew they would need their help. The Indians knew the woods and how to liv... ... to see their enimies. They also were very careful notto leave tracks. They used the river whenever possible so their footprints could notbe followed. The Indians could even tell when someone had tried to cover theirtracks by the way branches had been broken and other things like that. I found theway Indians communicate to be very interesting. The Mohicans spoke about howthe Indians have one develop for everything and they change how they want toexpress that word with the pitch of there voice. The Mohicans stressed how muchthe tone of voice mattered to them. This book has enticed me to learn more about the Indians and their custom s.They seemed to kill animals for no reason but after they were questioned by theEuropeans they gave good answers. At one point in the book they killed a cervid andthen told Cora and Alice that the deer would have given them away and by killingthe young deer it wouldnt face any hardship that might have come its way. I alsofound their shouts of war interesting and I would like to learn more about them.The story itself is what really kept me reading though. It was suspenseful andexciting. In closing, Im glad I read this book.