The Wordy Shipmates

American educational curriculums often teach that Puritans relocated to North America for “religious freedom.” Based on Vowell’s account of the colonists’ motivations and mental worlds, is this an accurate characterization of these early colonial endeavors? Why or why not?

“The Wordy Shipmates” is Vowell’s boiled-down description of Puritan emigrants. Does this title capture the essence of the historical actors in the book? Why does she use this and other short phrases to characterize the Puritans in humorous ways?

How does Vowell characterize the continent’s “original inhabitants”? How does she characterize their experiences alongside Spanish, French, and especially English colonists? What is the book’s main lesson about colonialism?