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Fools Crow

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Fools Crow
Robert Roth History 157 Richter
Fools Crow Essay
Throughout American history Native Americans have had a major impact on society. After the civil war many Americans considered settling in the west. A problem that arose was the presence of Native American tribes in the west. There has always been a border between Indians and white, but after the civil war conflicts occured quite often. The novel Fools Crow, written by James Welch, examines the lifestyle and interaction between whites and Native Americans after the war. The exploitation and bullying of Native Americans by white’s ultimately led to major conflict in the west. The post civil war relationship between Native American and Whites is explored in the text of Fools Crow. This novel’s story fits very well within historical events on a number of levels. The novel coincides within the context of history. In the novel, author James Welch depicts a tribe that is dealing with the pressures and abuse from White people. Much like in the novel, as settlers passed through these Native American lands, they began to take advantage of the Native American way of life. Also, there has been a history of fighting between Native Americans and Whites due to the exploitation of the land and Native American people. The novel depicts characters such as Fast Horse and Owl Child, who fight against the white men trying to take over their land. This fight against the whites is never a peaceful one for the Native Americans. Although Welch makes the reader recognize this, a war between the napikwan and pikuni is never referenced.
Violence between the Indians and whites was is visible in our history. Many tribes were being exploited by white men and soldiers. As settlers passed, Indian land was destroyed. For example, between 1850-1860 150,000 whites moved into Sioux territory in violation of treaty agreements. This exploitation is present even later in history. In 1974, during an exploratory mining



Cited: * Shi, David. "For The Record." volume 2. New York City: W.W & Norton and company, 1999. Print. * Tindall, George Brown. "America." A Narrative History. 8th edition. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company,inc, 1984. Print. * Welch, James. Fools Crow. New York City: Viking Penguin inc, 1987. 391. Print.

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