"The Last of the Mohicans"

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses how the overriding theme in Cooper's "The Last of the Mohicans" is really one of the innate belief in white supremacy and that race's need to posses the entire continent. The paper explains that the prevailing consciousness at the time the novel was written was about white privilege and this is represented in Cooper's tales.

From the Paper:

"Residing in the literary genre of the Romance novel, Cooper's work, the Last of the Mohicans' dominant backdrop is that of an adventure in the wilderness and the historical context of the siege and massacre of Fort William Henry in 1757. The overriding theme is civilization versus nature, or the war between instinct and reason. However, the undercurrent Cooper evokes is the feelings of his times regarding the white privilege of manifest destiny."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Cooper, James Fenimore. The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757. Cleveland, OH: World Publishing, 1957.
• Smith, Lindsey Claire. "Cross-Cultural Hybridity in James Fenimore Cooper's the Last of the Mohicans." ATQ (The American Transcendental Quarterly) 20.3 (2006)

More papers on "The Last of the Mohicans":

• Book Review # 136008 : "The Last of the Mohicans"
• Film Review # 119161 : "Romanticizing the Indians - "The Last of the Mohicans"
• Analytical Essay # 30049 : "The Last of the Mohicans"

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