It's not all awww-inspiring, ol' buddy ol' pal stuff in The Last of the Mohicans. In this novel, friendship occurs within the context of survival, meaning that true friends are people that always have your back… in order to make sure that your back isn't being shot full of musket balls.
Yeah, friendship here is a little more complicated than 4am pizza, inside jokes, and a shared love of people watching. It's a matter of dang life or death. But there's a big upside to this—even in ye olden (read: racist) days of colonial America the power of friendship crossed racial lines.
Questions About Friendship
- How would you characterize the relationship between Hawkeye and Chingachgook?
- Are interracial friendships more successful in the novel than interracial romances? Why might this be the case?
- What does friendship entail in The Last of the Mohicans?
- What is the basis of friendship in The Last of the Mohicans?
Chew on This
Friendship in The Last of the Mohicans is firmly linked to survival in the wilderness.
(Familial) blood may be thicker than water in The Last of the Mohicans, but ties of friendship are even more important than family.