Thanksgiving: Myth, Motive, and Modernity
Sun Nov 16 2025
A comprehensive deconstruction of the American Thanksgiving holiday, arguing that the popular narrative of a peaceful 1621 feast is a carefully constructed myth. It explains that the original 1621 harvest event was a strategic alliance between the Wampanoag and Pilgrims, born of mutual desperation, rather than idyllic friendship. Crucially, the text details how the modern, national holiday was established in the 19th century through the political efforts of editor Sarah Josepha Hale and President Abraham Lincoln, who sought to unite a fractured nation during the Civil War. This effort involved appropriating the 1621 event to create a patriotic origin story that conveniently obscured the subsequent history of violence and colonization. Finally, the source highlights the ongoing contestation of the holiday, noting that many Indigenous peoples observe Thanksgiving as a National Day of Mourning to protest the erasure of their history and the devastating impact of European settlement.
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A comprehensive deconstruction of the American Thanksgiving holiday, arguing that the popular narrative of a peaceful 1621 feast is a carefully constructed myth. It explains that the original 1621 harvest event was a strategic alliance between the Wampanoag and Pilgrims, born of mutual desperation, rather than idyllic friendship. Crucially, the text details how the modern, national holiday was established in the 19th century through the political efforts of editor Sarah Josepha Hale and President Abraham Lincoln, who sought to unite a fractured nation during the Civil War. This effort involved appropriating the 1621 event to create a patriotic origin story that conveniently obscured the subsequent history of violence and colonization. Finally, the source highlights the ongoing contestation of the holiday, noting that many Indigenous peoples observe Thanksgiving as a National Day of Mourning to protest the erasure of their history and the devastating impact of European settlement.