Native American Relationship Essay

The relationship between the Native Americans and the French could have its unsettled moments at but in comparison with other governments their relationship was beneficial to both parties, not just one. The French made allies of the "council of three fires"(p.120) by respecting their culture, the fur trade, and basing their relationship on alliances. While the French might not have approved of the Native Americans beliefs, they did follow certain traditions that made the interactions between them easier. One of such traditions was the "giving of gifts"(p.210) to the chiefs of ally tribes, this was also used to "build[] up the status and thus the influence of Aboriginal leaders"(p.210). When an influential person would pass away in one of the tribes would follow the practice of “ʻcovering deathsʼ with gifts.” (p.210) The French adherence to the native tradition of accompanying a major event with a present made their relationship stronger. Another way individual French people made bonds with different tribes was to get tattoos. Tattooing was very important to the Native Americans, it was a way of telling a person’s story. For a French person to be given such an honour was a very big deal because they had to be “commit[ed] to Indian social values” (p.?), along with earning a place in the tribe."coureurs de bois" (p.?) where the most
The French wanted the furs and the native tribes wanted weapons and tool that they didn’t have access to otherwise, this made their relationship very beneficial to both parties. The French trading weapons for fur gave the natives the ability to fight better against the intruders of their land and against enemy tribes. This also worked for the French because the native tribes would work with the tribes to destroy tribes that were against the