This piece from Heike's text shows the relationship between the Pilgrims and Native Americans, which is my main focus for this project. The myth we all know often simplifies the relationship between the two, illustrating it as harmonious and mutual, shown explicitly in the first Thanksgiving. However, Heike argues that indirect condescension is seen even in Bradford's words, which shows a rather positive perspective. This points to a tension between the myths we know and the truth of history, where the peaceful interactions we have grown to know are more prejudiced and filled with a sense of superiority.

Squanto, who was a member of the Patuxet tribe of Wampanoags, played a crucial role in the myth of the Pilgrim's survival. Squanto is usually portrayed as a helpful Native American who was a leader in teaching Pilgrim crucial survival skills. Heike's text points to his role and acknowledges it, but also provides a redefined perspective as well. For example, Squanto's ability to understand and speak English directly resulting from his history, was incredibly astonishing for Pilgrims. While often celebrated, this detail reveals a wide context of encounters with Pilgrims and the disruption of the Native lifestyle.

This paragraph is critical to the argument that the relationship between the Native Americans and the Pilgrims is a myth. This quote directly confronts the point that the Pilgrims' arrival was divinely ordained and they had a right to the land due to Manifest Destiny. Heike illustrates the inconsistency in the worldview perspectives between the Massasoit and the Pilgrims. The Massasoit focused on peaceful coexistence, while the Pilgrims pushed for the belief and right of the "Promised Land" to justify their colonization, setting a foundation for future conflict.

As shown in this quote, Thanksgiving is a very critical element in the Pilgrim and Native relationship. Heike connects Thanksgiving's establishment of a national holiday to a peaceful relationship between the two cultures. On the other hand, Heike also recognizes that a romanticized view of this idea blocks the given conflicts and power imbalances between the encounters. While there was shared experience at the first Thanksgiving, it does not represent the entire relationship between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans.

Looking at the quote from Edward Winslow found in Heike's text, emphasizes the contradictory attitudes of the Pilgrims against the Native Americans. Although Winslow recognizes the peace between the two groups, he also points to the Pilgrims' need for cultural and religious superiority. In this passage, the tension between the myth of historical peace and the underlying biases that led to the shaping of colonial relations is prevalent. Referring to Natives as "without any religion or knowledge of any God" reveals the ethnocentric ideals the Pilgrims had to use to justify colonization and to prohibit Native Americans from their spiritual practices.