48 pages • 1 hour read
Elizabeth George SpeareCalico Captive
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1957A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Background
Historical Context: The French and Indian War
Calico Captive takes place at the beginning of the French and Indian War (1754-1763), which was part of the larger Seven Years’ War. This was a pivotal conflict between Britain and France and both sides were supported by various Indigenous tribes. The war began over territorial disputes in the Ohio Valley and quickly spread across North America. In New England, the war had profound effects. The region experienced frequent raids and skirmishes, particularly in frontier areas. The inciting incident of Calico Captive is when the Abenaki tribe—who were allied with the French—captured Miriam and her family. They are eventually sold to the French in Montreal, which was also significantly impacted by the war.
Montreal was a major French stronghold, and the British military focused many military campaigns on it. The war has several important impacts on the novel, making Miriam and her family’s survival more difficult. The war waylays James for seven months because he cannot safely return to Montreal. Miriam experiences the anger of the Montreal people during the novel because—with some exceptions—overwhelmingly they viewed Miriam and other English prisoners as enemies. Miriam struggles to find anyone to hire her after the Du Quesnes turn her out. When Hortense and her family help Miriam and Susanna, their neighbors turn against them until Miriam and Susanna leave. The final impact on the novel’s events comes when the Governor of Montreal refuses to allow Miriam and her family to return to New England directly. Because James is a captain, the governor does not want him released to fight against the French. So, Miriam, Susanna, James, and their youngest children must board a ship to England, and then another ship to return to New England. In 1760, the British captured Montreal. This victory allowed Britain to gain control over Canada.
Literary Context: A Narrative of the Captivity of Mrs. Johnson
Speare based Calico Captive on A Narrative of the Captivity of Mrs. Johnson (1796), which was Susanna Willard Johnson’s account of her captivity by the Abenaki and then the French. Susanna wrote her memories of what occurred when she was 70 years old. Captured in August 1754 during a raid on Charlestown, New Hampshire, Susanna, James, their children, and Miriam endured significant hardship before finally returning to New England four years after they were captured.
The major events of A Narrative of the Captivity of Mrs. Johnson are based on Susanna’s account of her life, but Speare chose to focus on Susanna’s younger sister, Miriam, who was also captured. In the foreword to Calico Captive, Speare states that the novel consists of Miriam’s “imagined adventures, as they might have happened.” A Narrative of the Captivity of Mrs. Johnson reflects the prejudice against both the Indigenous Americans and the French that would have been common for Puritans in New England in the 1750s. Susanna frequently uses dehumanizing language toward the Indigenous Americans in particular, and Speare carries that language into Calico Captive.
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By Elizabeth George Speare
