The Pathfinder (1840), the fourth of the five Leatherstocking Tales, is set on Lake Ontario during the French and Indian Wars. Natty Bumppo and the Mohican chieftain Chingachgook are serving as scouts with the British forces at Ontario. A stirring account of Europeans, Indians, and colonials on the American frontier, the novel is also a critique of Jacksonian democracy and a meditation on the course of American civilization. Together with The Deerslayer (1841), it summarizes Cooper's evolving view of his culture, and stands as the culminating achievement of his literary career.
The text of this edition is that established by Richard Dilworth Rust. This volume includes both a new critical introduction and an historical essay which places the novel in the context of the french and Indian Wars.
Edited with an Introduction and Notes by William P. Kelly
About the Author
The creator of two genres that became staples of American literature — the sea romance and the frontier adventure — James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) was born in New Jersey, raised in the wilderness of New York, and spent five years at sea before embarking on his successful writing career. Among Cooper’s many novels, his best-known books are the five "Leatherstocking" tales — including The Deerslayer and The Last of the Mohicans — each featuring the fictional hero Natty Bumppo.
Stephen Railton, Professor of English at the University of Virginia, has written books on Cooper, Mark Twain, and the American Renaissance, and has created major websites on Twain, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and American culture.
