“They bid me speak what I thought he would give”: The Commodification of Captive Peoples during King Phillip’s War

This essay will address the systems of human trafficking that circulated both Native American and English captives during King Phillip’s War. Using the examples of Mary Rowlandson and King Phillip’s nameless son, the study explores the processes that turned captive peoples into commodities exchangeable for currency, material goods, or other humans. It argues that this commodification facilitated the circulation, exchange, and exploitation of captive peoples through human trafficking during King Phillip’s War.