Tales of the conversion of Native Americans to Christianity made up a popular genre in American literature of the eighteenth century. Samson Occom (1723–1792) was well known in his day as a member of the Mohegan nation who became a Presbyterian minister. In the mid-1700s, Anglo-Americans were enthralled in a revival period called the Great Awakening, which focused on the increasing secularization of society and how to combat it. In “A Short Narrative of My Life,” Occom tells the reader about his conversion to Christianity during this period. Occom studied under the well-known Reverend Eleazar Wheelock, a Congregational minister who eventually founded Dartmouth and established Moor's Charity School, which educated Native Americans. Occom is an important figure in American history as one of the first Native Americans to publish his works in English.