Widely regarded as the most important narrative of seventeenth-century New England, William Bradford's Of Plimmoth Plantation is one of the founding documents of American literature and history. In William Bradford's Books this portrait of the religious dissenters who emigrated from the Netherlands to New England in 1620 receives perhaps its sharpest textual analysis to date—and the first since that of Samuel Eliot Morison two generations ago. Far from the gloomy elegy that many readers find, Bradford's history, argues Douglas Anderson, demonstrates remarkable ambition and subtle grace, as it contemplates the adaptive success of a small community of religious exiles. Anderson offers fresh literary and historical accounts of Bradford's accomplishment, exploring the context and the form in which the author intended his book to be read.

The most important personal accounts of the Plymouth Colony, the key sources of Nathaniel Philbrick's New York Times bestseller Mayflower National Book Award winner Nathaniel Philbrick and his father, Thomas Philbrick, present the most significant and readable original works that were used in the writing of Mayflower, offering a definitive look at a crucial era of America's history. The selections include William Bradford's "Of Plymouth Plantation" (1651), the most comprehensive of all contemporary accounts of settlement in seventeenth-century America; Benjamin Church's "Entertaining Passages Relating to Philip's War 1716," an eye-opening account from Church's field notes from battle; and much more. Providing explanatory notes for every piece, the editors have vividly re-created the world of seventeenth-century New England for anyone interested in the early history of our nation. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Gathered during Plymouth Colony's crucial first decade, Bradford's Letter Book served as a sourcebook for the Governor's well-known history, "Of Plymouth Plantation." This intriguing set of letters and documents offers us valuable first-hand acquaintance with the leadership of New England's first plantation. From this collection, we can better appreciate the complex reality that lies behind our idealized image of "the Pilgrim Fathers." Here we can see the conflicting motives and internal struggles, the misunderstandings and misrepresentations, and the practical considerations which combined to shape the lives of the early Plymouth colonists.

Leaving behind a prosperous life in England, William Bradford and the other Pilgrims traveled on the Mayflower to a strange land in search of religious freedom. There Bradford established a stable colony, trying to be fair to both the colonists and the local Native Americans.

"Offers a powerful revisioning of the genesis of American literary history, revealing that from its earliest moments, American literature owes its distinctive shape and texture to the determining influence of indigenous thought and culture."--Joanna Brooks, San Diego State University "Partly a close, detailed analysis of the specific text and partly a broader analysis of Native identity, literary influences, and spiritual affiliation, the book makes a sophisticated and compelling claim for the way Indian influences permeate this Puritan text."--Hilary E. Wyss, Auburn University William Bradford, a leader among the Pilgrims, carefully recorded the voyage of the Mayflower and the daily life of Plymouth Colony in a work--part journal, part history--he titled Of Plimoth Plantation. This remarkable document is the authoritative chronicle of the Pilgrims' experiences as well as a powerful testament to the cultural and literary exchange that existed between the newly arrived Europeans and the Native Americans who were their neighbors and friends. It is well-documented that Native Americans lived within the confines of Plymouth Colony, and for a time Bradford shared a house with Tisquantum (Squanto), a Patuxet warrior and medicine man. In Bradford's Indian Book, Betty Booth Donohue traces the physical, intellectual, psychological, emotional, and theological interactions between New England's Native peoples and the European newcomers as manifested in the literary record. Donohue identifies American Indian poetics and rhetorical strategies as well as Native intellectual and ceremonial traditions present in the text. She also draws on ethnohistorical scholarship, consultation with tribal intellectuals, and her own experiences to examine the ways Bradford incorporated Native American philosophy and culture into his writing. Bradford's Indian Book promises to reshape and re-energize our understanding of standard canonical texts, reframing them within the intellectual and cultural traditions indigenous to the continent. Written partly in the Cherokee syllabary to express pan-Indian concepts that do not translate well to English, Donohue's invigorating, provocative analysis demonstrates how indigenous oral and thought traditions have influenced American literature from the very beginning down to the present day. Betty Booth Donohue is an independent scholar and a member of the Cherokee Nation.

You've heard about the Pilgrims, but have you read the original story? Here is the dramatic true story of the Plymouth Pilgrims as told by an eyewitness to their lives: their persecutions, secret meetings, angry negotiations, religious disputes, savage storms, kidnaping and sabotage, fear and faith, and their desperate struggle to survive. This is William Bradford's own story-the Plymouth Pilgrim thrust into the leadership of a struggling colony. His 400-year-old story is now carefully paraphrased for twenty-first century readers. IN THIS BOOK YOU WILL FIND: * A timeline of crucial historical events leading up to the Plymouth settlement. * Chapter questions for study, discussion, and reflection. * Maps and illustrations unique to this book. * Obscure historical references clarified within the text as part of the story. * The list of Mayflower passengers grouped into families. * Archaic language paraphrased into a clear, dramatic first-person account. * Adherence to the content, convictions, and chronology of Bradford's journal. This fresh retelling of the Pilgrim's true story concludes with their first full year in the New World, thereby encompassing all the events that fascinate us most: from their persecutions in England, to their dangerous ocean voyage, their first encounters with Native Americans, their struggle against sickness and starvation, culminating with their now famous celebration that we call the "First Thanksgiving." In this book you will find neither patriotic hero-worship, nor politically correct revisionism. This is the true story of Governor William Bradford, with all his faith, fears, and frailties, but retold in modern language so readers may hear his story the way he might tell it today over a hot cup of tea at your kitchen table. For wholesale purchases, see: https: //www.createspace.com/pub/l/createspacedirect.do?rewrite=true