Noble savage
The "noble savage" is a concept in literature and academia that refers to an uncivilized indigenous person characterized as inherently good and pure, often depicted as a member of native tribes such as Native Americans or indigenous peoples from Africa and South America. This archetype suggests that their goodness stems from a lack of contact with corrupting civilization. The term gained prominence in the 1600s and was notably popularized by Romantic writers in the 18th and 19th centuries, who celebrated the noble savage as a symbol of natural virtue and simplicity in contrast to industrialized society's moral failings. Influential authors like James Fenimore Cooper and François-René de Chateaubriand employed this character to critique European society, portraying indigenous lifestyles as noble and just. However, the romanticization of the noble savage has faced criticism, particularly in the 19th century, as it can perpetuate stereotypes and oversimplify the complexities of indigenous cultures. Additionally, the association of the noble savage with philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau has been challenged by modern scholarship, which clarifies that Rousseau did not advocate for this myth. Despite criticisms, the noble savage archetype persists in contemporary literature and film, often embodying ideals of kindness, bravery, and a deep connection to nature.
Noble savage
The noble savage is a phrase used in academia and literature to describe an uncivilized indigenous person who is good by nature. This character is usually a native tribal member such as a Native American, indigenous African, or indigenous South American. The noble savage's goodness is the result of not having any contact with civilization, which is a source of corruption. The concept of the noble savage has existed for many centuries, but the term itself was not coined until the 1600s. Romantic writers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries popularized this character, admiring the savage's purity and grace as a creature of nature. These characters were often used to highlight the immoral, exploitative disposition of civilized society. Well-known authors who made prominent use of the noble savage include James Fenimore Cooper and François-René de Chateaubriand.
Background
Europeans did not come to relate the term "savage" with "noble" until about a century after Christopher Columbus sailed to the Americas. The word savage did not originally have a negative connotation. The term was synonymous with "wild" and was commonly used to describe things of nature. Fifteenth- and sixteenth-century scholars such as Michel de Montaigne later attributed the term savage to cannibal tribes found in South America, but the original definition remained in use for many centuries. By the sixteenth century, scholars began taking a broader interest in the Native Americans as they explored the New World. Seventeenth-century travelers and ethnographers began cataloguing the many indigenous peoples they encountered. French author and lawyer Marc Lescarbot, who spent a year living among Souriquois tribes in eastern Canada in 1606, described one of the earliest conceptualizations of the noble savage.
During Lescarbot's time with the natives, he learned to take pleasure in gardening and tending to the lands, activities he termed "noble labor." He would also apply this description to the natives' generosity and general humaneness. His experience made him weary of his life in the civilized world. Lescarbot equated the natives' lifestyle with purity and godliness. He particularly applied these ideas to the natives' hunting practices. Lescarbot viewed the hunt as a gift from God. His beliefs clashed with European hunting practices, which limited hunting activities to royalty and other powerful individuals. Any Souriquois could partake in a hunt as they hunted to feed everyone, not just themselves. This made the natives "truly noble" to Lescarbot in the sense that their fairness made them worthy of the title of nobility.
The first known use of the phrase "noble savage" appeared in the 1672 play The Conquest of Granada by John Dryden. Some scholars believe Dryden picked up the term from Lescarbot's travel logs. The noble savage continued to make its way into literature in Aphra Behn's 1688 novel Oroonoko, about an honorable African prince sold into slavery by Europeans. By the early nineteenth century, literature had cemented the sentimental image of the noble savage as "nature's gentleman." Authors commonly used these characters to illustrate the stark contrast between industrialized European society and the simple lifestyles of the natives. The noble savage made prominent appearances in a number of classic works of fiction throughout the nineteenth century. French author François-René de Chateaubriand wrote multiple novels that include idealized versions of Native Americans. James Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales, a collection of five novels, also features a number of noble savage–type characters. Several noble savage characters appear in Herman Melville's most famous work Moby-Dick, each one representing a different indigenous region.
Depictions of the noble savage in art and literature became the target of criticism in the mid-nineteenth century. Charles Dickens's highly critical article "The Noble Savage," published in 1853, condemns the use of the phrase and its representation in art. Dickens strikes down the noble savage as myth, calling Native Americans "diabolical" and capable of the same types of cruelties as Europeans. A number of writers agreed with Dickens, but the standard characteristics of the noble savage endured in Romantic era literature.
Association with Anthropology
The idea of the noble savage was wrongly associated with eighteenth-century French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau for many centuries. In his book The Myth of the Noble Savage, anthropology professor Ter Ellingson puts forth the argument that racist scholars used the noble savage myth to popularize the concept of inferior races. Ellingson believes a number of nineteenth-century anthropologists manipulated Rousseau's language to give theories about scientific racism intellectual substance. According to Ellingson, British anthropologists John Crawfurd and James Hunt used Rousseau's writings to promote their belief in racial superiority from an anthropological standpoint. Rousseau never used the phrase noble savage in his works, however, nor does he sentimentalize the concept. His studies discuss humanity's "natural" state and praise the simple life of savage tribes, but overall do not promote the ways of the savage. The association between Rousseau's work and the noble savage myth circulated well into the twentieth century before scholars began criticizing the connection. Modern scholars no longer relate Rousseau to the establishment of the noble savage concept.
Modern Usage of the Noble Savage
The idealized noble savage survived to feature in contemporary fiction writings and eventually made its way into film. Books and movies stuck to the typical noble savage formula, portraying native people who were kind, brave, and graceful. These characters promoted the majesty of nature and often assisted predominately white protagonists with their endeavors. The noble savage has appeared in a number of critically acclaimed movies throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries including Broken Arrow (1950), Dances with Wolves (1990), and Pocahontas (1995). The character also gave rise to a counterpart, the ignoble savage, which exhibited the opposite attitudes of the noble savage. Ignoble savages were cruel and immoral, contributing to the protagonist's downfall. Critics have accused filmmakers of restricting the Native American film presence to historical narratives. This restriction is often paired with a tendency to portray the natives as reserved and silent in their interactions with others.
Bibliography
Ellingson, Ter. The Myth of the Noble Savage. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001. Print.
Hill, Amelia. "Racists Created the Noble Savage." Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited. 15 Apr. 2001. Web. 15 Feb. 2014. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/apr/15/socialsciences.highereducation
King, C. Richard. Media Images and Representations. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers, 2006. 21–25. Print.
"Michel de Montaigne: On Cannibals (1580)." Reading About the World, Volume 2. Ed. Paul Brians et al. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Custom Books, 1999. Print.
Nisbet, H. B., and Claude Rawson, ed. The Cambridge History of Literary Criticism: Volume IV, The Eighteenth Century. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 458–459. Print.