5. Should the European encounter with the Indian peoples of the Americas be understood primarily as a story of conquest and exploitation, or as one of mutual cultural encounter that brought beneficial as well as tragic results for both?…
The Indians were here before the name American even existed. In Luther Standing Bear’s essay “what the Indian means to America”, he informed us of how great the American Indian is. While many scholars would debate on the true heritage of America’s beginning, The Indian would not join this argument because they alone know the real story of this country we call home. Within this essay the Indians are a breed of people that do not lie down easily. Many would strongly agree with Luther Standing Bear’s definition that the Indian is a true American. The Indians are the roots under America soil because of their strong connection with nature, their spiritual toughness, and their musical influence.…
Native Americans were pushed from their lands and forced to change their culture by the…
In 1871 a story was published in The Wisconsin State Register of Portage, WI, detailing the story of a boy being a captive of Blackfeet Indians for seven years. All of his family with the exception of him and his younger sister had been brutally killed in a raid. His father was killed and scalped, his mother was gutted alive, the infant was impaled on a fence, and his two older sisters (aged 20 and 21) had their hands and feet nailed to a wall, killed and scalped. After travelling an unknown distance the Blackfeet and their captives made camp. The boy’s left arm and the girl’s ear were cut off as a way of branding the prisoners. After this the Indian band split up and the boy never saw his sister again. The boy was castrated and physically…
“Red earth white lies” by Vine Deloria is by all accounts and standards is a ground breaking book which brings into light the troubling picture of cultural bias against the native American Indians, their origin and historic traditions. In his own words he emphasizes the need of dialog between western science and tribal people and says “corrective measures must be taken to eliminate scientific misconceptions about Indians, their culture and their past”. He goes on to say “there needs to be a way that Indian traditions can contribute to the understanding of scientific beliefs at enough specific points so that the Indian traditions will be taken seriously as valid bodies…
Providing a fresh perspective, Wallace argues against previous historical claims that indicated Native American were a peoples who needed to be civilized or who were a threat. Wallace states, that the focus of the book is to look…
“lose their language, they will lose their identity, its the last thing Indians have.” Joseph and…
The argument that whether American Indians should be fully integrated into the American society or that it is best to continue to maintain and support American Indians staying on their reservation has been an important dispute for many years. The place of Indians in American society may be seen as one aspect of the question of the integration of minority groups into the social system. Only by maintenance of freedom for cultural variation can a heterogeneous society keep conflict at a minimum. In my opinion, in the long run, integration is the best way to go. Not only is it human nature to feel belonging in a greater society regardless of origin, but it also promotes multiculturalism in America. A way of incorporating American Indians…
Native American culture is an important aspect which every American has the obligation to study .it’s very important to learn about who were the natives Americans and to understand the process of how mix cultures in the United States of America came in to the picture. The study of Native American culture comprises the aspects such as religion, culture and tradition, dancing, food, dressings, way of life, education marriage and much more. All these aspects American culture evolved over the years, and with time, the society changed in to a more flexible and supple society. The movie industry is also one of the most important aspects of Native American culture which has transformed the society greatly, pulling people from all over the world to…
For most of my life, the word “Native American” had immediately made me think of feathers, powwows, and a society uncorrupted by civilization. However, in watching the movie Smoke Signals, a movie that depicts the modern Native American culture, I learned many other things. For one, I learned that many of the customs that modern Native Americans have are very similar to my others. I also saw that the family life of the Native Americans in the film had many of the same problems that my family had undergone in the past years such as fighting and not telling along. This film was unlike any that I have ever seen.…
References: White, R. (2011). Problems Facing Native Americans in the Modern World. Retrieved from http://robwrite.hubpages.com/…
During the 16th and 17th centuries, when the Europeans started to come over to the new world, they discovered a society of Indians that was strikingly different to their own. To understand how different, one must first compare and contrast some of the very important differences between them, such as how the Europeans considered the Indians to be extremely primitive and basic, while, considering themselves civilized. The Europeans considered that they were model societies, and they thought that the Indians society and culture should be changed to be very similar to their own.…
The Cherokee are perhaps one of the most interesting of Native American Groups. Their life and culture are closely intertwined with early American settlers and the history of our own nation 's struggle for freedom. In the interest of promoting tolerance and peace, and with regard to the United States government 's handling of Native affairs, their story is one that is painful, stoic, and must not be forgotten.…
In this painting by George Catlin titled “Assinneboine Chief before and after Civilization” it shows a very proud Assinneboine Chief standing straight and proud. His clothing expresses his Indian culture as he is dressed in leggings and shirt made of mountain goat skin, and finished with a pictured robe of buffalo hide over his right shoulder. Moccasins covered his feet and his tribal headdress decorated his head allowing his long hair to blend with the feathers of his headdress. In his left hand is his long pipe which he would smoke with those with whom he would want to make peace. The background which is painted in a lighter hue then the opposite side of the painting reveals a dirt road which leads to the capitol building in Washington, suggesting that the Chief is traveling to there with peaceful intentions. The only green in the painting is the landscape surrounding the Capitol building. Could this be to show the wealth of those who lived there, to depict that the grass may be greener on the other side?…
Thesis: Modern Native American traditions reflect the history of struggle, strife and triumph they experienced in history.…