The Captured - Literary Analysis Essay

Introduction

The Captured: A True Story of Abduction on the Texas Frontier is a book authored by Scott Zesch. According to a review done by Gary (130), the author studied the story of a minority of Indian incarcerations on the Texas Frontier in the 1870s. Scott Zesh was inspired by the life of Adolph Korn (1859-1895), a distant family, who was abducted at the age of nine by Comanche Indians (Ebersole 130). The Indian abduction story has been an embodiment of the American nonfiction, explaining the problems the captives went through (Ebersole 130). In his book, the author seeks psychological elucidation highlighting the reason why a lot of child captives incorporated the Indian culture (Ebersole 130). Scott Zesch unreservedly sketches out the mindset of German immigrants in Texas at this period as accentuated in chapter 2 of his book "Germans in Comanche Land" (Ebersole 130). The paper will provide overarching research on the reason why Comanches take captives, and how the experiences of that period portray the Native American culture.

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The Broader Historical Context of the Stories of Adolf Korn

The tale of the eventual abduction of Adolf Korn began on a dazzling spring morning in 1782, where a nine-year-old Jonathan Alder and his elder sibling David started a journey to look for a mare that had strayed from their isolated cabin in Southwest Virginia to the Rocky Mountains and dense forests within the countryside (Alder 1-2). Before dusk, the boys found their house, however as they tried to direct the stubborn animal home, they were attacked by a group of Comanche Indians (Alder 1-2). Alder was abducted, while his brother was killed on the spot. His abductors brought him back to Ohio, where he was brought up by a Mingo soldier and his "Shawnee" wife (Alder 1-2).

In Ohio, he spent thirteen years, during the entire period, Jonathan adopted the Indian culture. He was able to learn their language and follow their culture (Alder 2-4). Alder traded and represented the Indians during the war. Immediately, after the demise of his adopted guardians, Jonathan left the Indians and eventually settled in Pleasant Valley (Alder 2-4). After a while, he set out to Virginia to find his mother and the remaining siblings, an area where he usually lived before being captured (Alder 2-4). Adolf married a lady from Virginia and then returned back to the Pleasant Valley, where he became a domestic superstar due to his childhood experiences (Alder 1-3).

The captivity tales from the Ohio frontier have captured the attention of many audiences from the colonial period to the contemporary day (Alder 2). The best of these stories induce a sense of high escapade and romance as explained in the preceding paragraphs. The abduction tale of Alder is particularly significant since he continued to narrate his stories long after he fled from the Indians (Alder 2-5). The narrative, therefore offer a unique perspective on the Old Northwest, and its transformation from wilderness to statehood, and the growing association between Ohio Indian and Whites from the Revolutionary War period to an era where most of the state's native people had been removed (Alder 2-5). Jonathan's captivity tale is one of the broadest individual accounts to live from Ohio's frontier and early settlement periods. His nostalgia covers half a century tale that began when he was captured in 1782 to 1832 when the Indian state was evolving as an industrial power and canals connected to Ohioans and Ohio commodities to the East and Markets in the entire world.

What do the Experiences of White Captives Inform the Reader about the Native American Culture?

The experiences of Texas pioneers held in custody by Indians have rivetted readers for over three eras. Hundreds of redeemed captives have authored different accounts of their quests, and most of them have recognized that they had relished the lifestyle of their abductors (Heard 1-2). Also, the experiences of the young white captives (Jonathan Adolf) who were raised by Indian families portray that these whites were treated as aboriginals Indians, and they acknowledged and appreciated the culture of the Indians (Heard 2). In a nutshell, the white prisoners were assimilated into the Indian culture, thereby depicting the Native American culture as the one controlled by native Indians (Heard 1-3).

During that period, the white captives lived in relentless fear of their Indian captors. For the white men, the abduction normally ended in death from agonizing anguish from the Indians. On the other hand, women feared permanent servitude, forced early marriage, and sexually assault (Heard 9-10). The "frontier people" tried to stay on alert against Indian incarceration to avoid being killed. The Native American culture was run by Indians, as they captured many whites, and subjected them to forced labor and torture (Heard 9). Their favorite style of attack was to mount a chalet during the wee hours of the morning and to haste to the household when the father came outside to protect their families (Heard 10). The Indians would slaughter men, old women, and kids too small to travel, but they would capture young females and older children (Heard 10). On normal occasions, the surviving household members were forced to carry the remains of their parents, little siblings, and experience that affected their psychological structure.

However, several studies have established that many detainees acknowledged the Indians as their people, and came to see the whites as foes. This reasoning was demonstrated in 1764 when Colonel Henry Bouquet attacked the Shawnee throttlehold on the Muskingum River and forced the Indians to release hundreds of captives (Heard 11). At the point of release, many white prisoners had forgotten their original languages, therefore it was seen as important to list them on the "official logo" under entries such as "Cut-Arm", or "German Girl" since they could no longer recall their names (Heard 11). During the attempts to release those who were in captivity, the majority of the white prisoners were murdered during the journey to the Indian village (Heard 13-14). The tales of the Indian captivity was one of the most renowned genres of American literature for more than a century.

What do the experiences of the White Captives tell us About the Pioneer Culture?

Alder (9) indicates that the White captives embraced the pioneer culture of their captors and later the European culture. They started tugging the hair from their bodies except for a scalp lock gown in the crown of their head. Many of them also slit their ear lobes and brushed the top of their shoulders (Alder 9-10). The men adorned themselves with tattoos just as it was a norm for the Indians. Westernization was also evident as both genders wore clothes made from European draperies, cooked in iron kettles, and tin pots made from European materials (Alder 9-10). They also slept in wrapped European blankets, and finally embraced the jewelry fashion that was then in Europe (Alder 9-10). Most of them professed to Christianity and used firearms obtained from Europe (Alder 9-10).

Why did the "Comanches" take Whites as Captives?

In a review done by Johnson (318), he stated that The Captured: A True Story of Abduction on the Texas Frontier tells a gripping story of frontier conflict, Indian abduction, and cultural displacement (Johnson 318). The author combines nine distinct tales as he recreates the experiences of his uncle (Jonathan Adolf) and eight other German children who were abducted by the Comanche from the Texas Hill between 1865 and 1871 (Johnson 318). Basing its argument on the children's experiences, the book is classified into three portions covering their capture, their life, and assimilation into the Indian tribe (Johnson 318). In some instances, these kids witnessed brutal killings torture of their parents and siblings which affected them psychologically (Johnson 318).

The author explains that the Comanche and Apache captured the white prisoners not only to profit from the ransom emolument, but to replace their lost family members, and also bolster their inhabitants through converting these young American population into their culture (Mika 88-90). Their population was declining due to war, diseases, and dispossession (Mika 88-90). The German children who were abducted were between the age of eight to thirteen, and they were transported for many miles and compelled to live with the people from completely different societies. Zesch underscores that the prisoners managed to lay aside these horrific memories, and came to relate the experiences they underwent through as a catastrophic consequence of the Indian's predicament at the hands of assaulting white militaries and colonizers (Mika 91).

In a nutshell, the Comanches took captives to replenish their tribal numbers that had been plummeted by the spread of European (Mika 89-90). They also wanted to replace the valuable members who had succumbed through violent encounters with the augmenting number of European colonialists (Mika 90-91). The final reason, why they took captives was to exact revenge and offer sacrifices for their fallen militias (Mika 90-91).

Assessing How the Stories of the White Captives and the Captors fit into Larger Patterns in the History of the United States West

The Captured: A True Story of Abduction on the Texas Frontier details the torture that Anglo women captives and children were subjected to by Comanche captors (Mika 48). Appallingly, as the tales imply, Comanches appeared willing to carry out these gruesome acts of violence to avert the Anglo propagation in Texas and the spread of Christian Civilization (Mika 49-51). The captivity tales within the book reflect the experiences of Anglo survivors who were "reified" and tested through the association with the Comanche threat just beyond the horizon of the frontier.

The decade before to the outburst of the Civil War was a period of great revolutions in Texas (Mika 48). The battle between the Anglos, Hispanics, and the Native Americans, growing settler colonies, and the outbreak of diseases all altered the landscape and the population of Texas (Mika 48). The region prided itself on booming agricultural and mineral wealth, and this made the Anglos express their desire to control the land. During this period, the numbers of the Comanches were decimated due to the outbreak of diseases and famine (Mika 49-50). The press in the period of Anglo dominance in Texas still relied on the established soldiers to battle in the war. When Texas was promulgated as a Republic, most Anglo people emigrated in large numbers to the region. The Anglos became the most populous racial category in the region (Mika 49-50).

Conclusion: What the Captured Book Informs the Audience About the American Frontier

Schmidt (n.p) argued that most American Frontiersmen regarded being abducted by the Comanches and Apache's a "fate worse than death," however not everybody who was apprehended had the same reservations (Schmidt n.p). One of the American Frontiersmen who considered it as a bit of luck is Adolph Korn who benefitted from the capture and even adapted to the itinerant life of the Comanches (Schmidt n.p). Jonathan Korn started training with these dangerous worriers and even represented them into war. Ultimately, he was obliged to return to his native society, however, he did not manage well, and ended up living a solitary life in a cavern (Schmidt n.p). The women who were captured feared for their lives, since the Apache's and Comanches sexually assaulted them, and subjected to forced marriages (Schmidt n.p).

Works Cited

Alder, Clay Henry. "A History of Jonathan Alder: His Captivity and the Life with the Indians." 2010. 1-25. Retrieved from: http://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=10...