Comparing description of New England in John Smith's "A Description of New England" and William Bradford's "Of Plymouth Plantation"

Essay by 5656426College, UndergraduateA, September 2007

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In the two literary works, "A Description of New England," by John Smith and "Of Plymouth Plantation," by William Bradford, the two authors represent New England differently. One way they represent New England differently is by the tone of how they tell their personal stories, varies noticeably. Both authors use certain tones to attract and persuade targeted audiences. John Smith wrote of what a wonderful place New England was, while on the other hand Bradford wrote about the difficulties and realities of New England. John Smith, a pilgrim who arrived in the Americas, writes a description of the new land. In "A Description of New England" he shows what a wonderful world of vast food and pleasure await. However, William Bradford, another pilgrim who arrived on the coast of Massachusetts, in Plymouth, gives his take on the early settling of the new land. In "Of Plymouth Plantation" he writes a description of how the pilgrims actually lived and what really happened in Plymouth.

Both authors also contribute differently to a view of America's land and its people. I also know how the people back in England must have felt and what they thought about New England, the good and the bad, because there are people today that try to get other people to travel to their country or state or donate money to far away countries that are poverty stricken.

In "A Description of New England," Smith starts by describing the pleasure and satisfaction that risking your life for getting your own piece of land brings to oneself. He also suggests that building your own house, planting your own crops, and having "God's blessing and his own industry" (Smith 61). would be easy to have without having any unfairness. Then he talks about the...