In these novels, Cooper introduces Natty Bumppo, the central character, who embodies the spirit of the frontier in The deerslayer, The Prairie, The Last of the Mohicans, The Pathfinder, and The Pioneers." (Groliers) Over the years Natty Bumppo has been looked up to by many because of his bravery, honesty, and his will to help people in a time of need. Readers have watched grow and mature as though they were with him the whole time. "In The Deerslayer, Natty is seen as and idealized youth. Natty is later seen wondering through the forest and lonely waters and is confronted by hunters, Indians, and the hostile Europeans" (Groliers NP). This is an example of Natty encountering physical danger. This wilderness scout is the first of his kind in American literature and was seen nowhere before by the American readers. This novel allowed the readers to enter a world where they could relive the Revolutionary War, Indian wars, and battles on the frontier. After The Deer Slayer, Natty Bumppo is seen in The Last of the Mohicans. In this novel, Natty is called Hawkeye because of his ties to the Mohicans. Indians of this time were looked upon as savages, "but Natty has taken unto himself the best of both civilization and so-called savagery" (Cliff Notes 11). Because he made peace with the Indians, he had a mysterious and dangerous quality in the eyes of the reader. In this novel Natty has many close native companions to join him in his endeavors on the frontier. "During the French and Indian Wars, The Legendary woodsman, Natty Bumppo, is know by another famous alias's, The Pathfinder. His companions in this story is his adoptive Indian father, Chingachgook and the beautiful, Mabel Dunham. They become involved in an attempt to rescue a besieged British fort where he faces danger many times." (Eonline) "The last novel of the Leatherstocking Tales Natty appears in is The Prairie. Here Natty is viewed as a decrepit, old man.
