Altruism

      The idea of altruism, or sacrificing one's wishes and desires in order to further the something greater than oneself, is something that I picked up on a number of times in my reading of Hope Leslie.  The first instance I noticed of this was when Mr. Fletcher chose to pursue the success of his beliefs, such as liberty and puritanism, in the New World rather than stay and marry the woman of his dreams, Alice.  In choosing to sacrifice the life he would have had with Alice in England, Mr. Fletcher signified that he believed the cause he was trying to push forward was too important to be halted by personal whims.  In continuation with this point, I must note that the woman he married, Mrs. Fletcher, was quite different and, to be honest, very boring and submissive.
      The point that I want to make now, though, is that I found it interesting how Mr. Fletcher sought to push Everell along a path similar to the one he had chosen: a life pursuant of religion and relinquishing desires (Hope Leslie) for mediocrity and boredom (Esther).
       A more concrete and tangible example of sacrifice in favor of a greater good is seen when Magawisca threw her arm in front of the blade that was to kill Everell.  This act of courage allowed Everell to escape certain death and return home, effectively ending the cycle of vengeance between the Indians and the English in this novel.