Prompt 3

William Penn is considered unique among our foundational figures because of his supposedly benevolent relationship with Native Americans. This friendship was often implied in the discussion of the "Great Treaty" Penn signed with the Indians of his area, a plan that allowed him to gain land through purchase rather than conquest. This treaty, which some historians consider mythical, has been the subject of several iconic American paintings. For this blog entry, I would like you to exercise those visual analysis skills and offer a brief comparative analysis of two of these paintings. The first is "Penn's Treaty with the Indians," and it was painted by Edward Hicks around 1840. (This is the painting above that is accompanied by text.) The second is Benjamin West's painting "Treaty of Penn with Indians" that was painted between 1771 and 1772. What argument do these paintings make about the bodies they depict? Is it the same argument? Are they making distinct arguments? I've included some helpful links for your analysis.

West's painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts website: http://www.pafa.org/paintingsPreview.jsp?id=970

Hick's painting at National Gallery of Art website: http://www.nga.gov/cgi-bin/pinfo?Object=59640+0+none

Wikipedia entry on William Penn: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Penn

Essay on William Penn and the Indians from University of Virginia's American Studies Program: http://xroads.virginia.edu/~cap/PENN/pnind.html