Final answer:
Virginia settlers were mainly adventurers seeking to rise into the ranks of gentry, whereas Massachusetts settlers were Puritans looking for religious freedom. Their interactions with Native Americans reflected their differing motivations. Both groups shared English backgrounds but contributed to diverse religious and governance practices in the New World.
Step-by-step explanation:
Settlers in Virginia and Massachusetts differed and resembled each other in various aspects during the early seventeenth century. Virginia's settlers, particularly those who founded Jamestown, were often adventurers and gentlemen aiming to rise into the ranks of gentry, highlighting economic motives and the transplantation of English ideals.
In contrast, Massachusetts was primarily settled by Puritans seeking religious freedom, thus imbued with stricter religious underpinnings. While Virginia settlers had aspirations for wealth and were involved in cultivating tobacco, leading to interactions with Native Americans that were often contentious and driven by land and labor requirements, Massachusetts settlers aimed for a religiously pure community, which also led to complex interactions with the indigenous populations but through a more ideologically driven lens.
Despite these differences, Virginia and Massachusetts settlers shared similar English backgrounds and contributed to the diversification of the New World colonies in terms of religion, economic practices, and governance systems. The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom and the 'visible saints' criteria for governance in Massachusetts Bay reflect the varying attitudes towards religion and governance in the colonies.