The Last of the Mohicans

A detailed Summary of The Last of the Mohicans

In The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper, historical romance is apparent through settings, characters and plots. Cooper is considered by many critics to be the father of the American historical romance. Fred Lewis Patee said, "Not only was Cooper the pioneer (of the historical romance) in America, and thus worthy of the highest praise, but in many respects his romances have never been surpassed." (212) Cooper celebrated the creative spirit of the individual and had a deep appreciation for nature. He was a romantic who enjoyed the mysteriousness and exoticness of the frontier. He favored the use of emotions over reason. Through his romantic writings, Cooper is able to captivate the reader and led them on journey through his imaginary world.

The setting in The Last of the Mohicans exhibits Cooper's historical romantic writing. The novel takes place in the American frontier. It is a place of "...wild and virgin nature." (Roundtree 52) The immense beauty and threat of danger from its' terrain creates an exotic impression on the reader. The mystique of the frontier entices the reader and allows their imagination to soar. Fred Lewis Pattee expresses his feelings on the use of the setting in "The Historical Romanc

Cooper celebrates the creative spirit by creating an intense plot that captivates the reader. This intensity can be seen in the novel when Alice, Cora, and Major Duncan set out for Fort Henry on the secret route. A dangerous character named Magua leads them. The reader knows that Magua was previously punished severely by the girl's father. This situation creates a feeling of apprehension for the reader. The reader does not use reason and question why this dangerous character would be chosen to led them, but is filled with suspense as these seemingly innocent characters are put into jeopardy. Cooper keeps the plot movement swift and full of urgency. This technique gives the reader hardly any times to question seriously why Munro's daughters would push forward their visit at this worst of times and would feel safer almost alone on a dangerous path in savage territory than in the company of several hundred trained fighting men. (Hart 103) From this early scene, Cooper's dramatic irony is able to make the readers forget reason and be taken into Cooper's romantic world through emotions. Cooper keeps the readers in awe by intriguing them with his stories of heroism and fighting. Critic Fred Lewis Pattee calls the novel a "book of rescues in the nick of time." (212) This nick of time rescue can be seen when Hawkeye, Chingachgook, and Uncas save Alice and Cora on the summit of a mountain. (212) As one of the Huron Indians raises his knife to kill Heyward, Hawkeye fires his rifle to save the girls. This last minute rescue is not logical to the reader. However, the reason is not questioned because the reader is engrossed in the emotions from the chase scene. Cooper portrays his characters to do impossible feats. His plots favor emo

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Approximate Word count = 1175
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels