Honor in the Last of the Mohicans Essay Example
Honor in the Last of the Mohicans Essay Example

Honor in the Last of the Mohicans Essay Example

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  • Pages: 3 (813 words)
  • Published: December 3, 2017
  • Type: Essay
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Honor means the showing of respect or an intense sense of ethical conduct (http://www.

merriam-webster. com/dictionary/honor). The Last of the Mohicans was set during a time of honor and sacrifice and those with great passion gave it their all. Honor is shown through love of family and brotherhood throughout the film.

There are many instances where honor is an issue in the film. The French offered a cease fire to the English when they found out no reinforcements were coming to help them. The colonists’ demonstrated honor to their families.The Native Americans honored the agreement between the English and the colonists, and the British demonstrated honor by surrendering for the sake of their men. The first group I would like to discuss is the colonists.

The colonists were asked to j

...

oin the English militia to fight against the French. They were torn by this request. They know they have a sense of responsibility to their government. However, most of them have families. If they left their homes to fight in the war, their families would be unprotected and vulnerable to enemy attack.

I feel many of them feared more for their loved ones rather than their own lives or outcome of the war. I would have the same feelings. Unless my family was guaranteed protection, I would refuse to fight as well. If families are not protected, no one would be able to rest knowing there is a chance members of your family can be hurt, or possibly killed. It was very honorable for the colonists to put their families first when trying to make a difficult decision.

The next group I would like to discus

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is the Native Americans. Honor and diligence were the way of the Mohican tribe.They had a strong love for their families and brotherhood. They will not let war or anything else come between this unity. Hawkeye demonstrated honor when he helped some of the colonists escape so they can go to their families.

According to a treaty between the English and the colonists, they would have permission to leave if the Indians threatened their families. This was not happening, so Hawkeye took it upon himself to honor the terms of the treaty. Hawkeye did this knowing he would face dire circumstances. However, he still did it. He has such an intense love of family and he always puts that first.

If the English were not going to win the war, there was no reason for these men to stay and get hurt, or even killed. The next group I would like to discuss is the French. General Montcalm of the French army offered a cease fire to the English. They did this so the English would have a chance for a humanitarian surrender. The French were also aware of the lives being lost and knew reinforcements were not coming for the English before they did. If reinforcements were not coming, the French would just be fighting the same men over and over again.

They started to see there was no point in that. Therefore, the French told the English about the lack of reinforcements. This was a very noble and honorable thing to do. The French could have been sneaky and malicious about the information they had, but they did the right thing.

They did not use

that important information to their advantage, when it was so easy to do so. The French demonstrated respect and esteem toward the English. This brings us to the last group, the English. Colonel Munro knew things were looking grim for the English army.

The militia was clinging on to their lives, and as we know, reinforcements were not coming. Colonel Munro was realizing they will not win, so he accepted General Montcalm’s cease fire. He did this for the sake of the lives of his English soldiers. I feel any further killing would have served no purpose. The only thing it would have done was destroy more lives. By accepting this cease fire, I feel Colonel Munro showed a lot of dignity and pride.

A person can earn so much more respect by thinking of others when a decision has to be made. Colonel Munro accomplished this.His men respected him, as well as, the French. As you can see, these four groups from The Last of the Mohicans demonstrated honor in one way or another.

They all had different reasons for doing whatever they did. But, in the end, the right decisions were made. The colonists and the Native Americans were driven by the immense love they have of their families and the English and French were driven by what was right for their men. Honor is not a difficult thing to accomplish or show, but a person has to be willing to let their deepest inner passions guide them in that direction.

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