A genre of American literature popular from the 16th to the 19th century was the Indigenous captivity narrative, or "Indian" captivity narrative. These stories gave an account of a woman who was kidnapped and held captive by Indigenous people, told from her perspective.
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In most cases, the women taken captive are White women of European descent. These narratives—which could be used as a form of propaganda to push religious, political, or social agendas—sometimes characterized Indigenous people as uncivilized, barbaric, and inferior to White people and sometimes characterized them as kind and fair.
Sensationalism often played a key role in these narratives and some accounts contained elements of fiction to shock readers and pull them in. Mary Rowlandson is credited as being the first woman to write an Indigenous captivity narrative in 1682, which was titled "Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson."
Gender Roles
These captivity narratives played into the culture's definition of what a "proper woman" should be and do. Women in these narratives are not treated as women "should" be—they often see the violent deaths of husbands, brothers, and children. The women also are unable to fulfill "normal" women's roles: protect their own children, dress neatly and cleanly in the "proper" garments, restrict their sexual activity to marriage to the "appropriate" kind of man. They are forced into roles unusual for women, including violence in their own defense or that of children, physical challenges such as long journeys by foot, or trickery of their captors. Even the fact that they publish stories of their lives is stepping outside "normal" women's behavior.
Racial Stereotypes
The captivity stories also perpetuate stereotypes of Indigenous people and settlers and were part of the ongoing conflict between these groups as the settlers moved westward. In a society in which men are expected to be the protectors of women, the kidnapping of women is viewed as an attack or an affront of the males in the society, as well. The stories serve thus as a call for retaliation as well as for caution in relating to these "dangerous" Indigenous people. Sometimes the narratives also challenge some of the racial stereotypes. By depicting the captors as individuals, often as people who also face troubles and challenges, the captors are also made more human. In either case, these Indigenous people captive narratives serve a directly political purpose and can be seen as a kind of political propaganda.
Religion
The captivity narratives also usually refer to the religious contrast between the Christian captive and the pagan Indigenous people. Mary Rowlandson's captivity story, for instance, was published in 1682 with a subtitle that included her name as "Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, a Minister's Wife in New England." That edition also included "A Sermon on the Possibility of God's Forsaking a People that have been near and dear to him, Preached by Mr. Joseph Rowlandson, Husband to the said Mrs. Rowlandson, It being his Last Sermon." The captivity narratives served to define piety and women's proper devotion to their religion and to give a religious message about the value of faith in times of adversity.
Sensationalism
Indigenous captivity narratives can also be seen as part of a long history of sensational literature. Women are depicted outside their normal roles, creating surprise and even shock. There are hints or more of improper sexual treatment—forced marriage or rape. Violence and sex—then and now, a combination that sells books. Many novelists took up these themes of "life among the heathens."
Enslaved Person Narratives and Indigenous Captivity Narratives
Enslaved person narratives share some of the characteristics of Indigenous captivity narratives: defining and challenging women's proper roles and racial stereotypes, serving as political propaganda (often for abolitionist sentiments with some ideas of women's rights), and selling books through shock value, violence, and hints of sexual misconduct.