Thomas Moore Analysis

The first source I will be analysing is a photo of a young Aboriginal boy named Thomas Moore, before and after his attending a residential school. This source is from 1874, as stated by the caption. In the before photo we see Moore wearing traditional Aboriginal clothing. He appears to be standing outside and has long, braided hair. In the second photo we see him again, but this time he is wearing European style clothing, a dress shirt and slacks. He is standing inside a building and now has very short hair. This change does not take long to occur; he looks the same age in both photographs. These photos show the assimilation of Thomas Moore, a Native American boy into European culture. It shows how residential schools attempted to eradicate
It reads: “It is the capitalist mentality that has fashioned the legacies of the modern world. The capitalist has set in place forces for the development of mercantilism and colonialism to serve personal interests. The capitalist has occupied lands, fought in wars and turned the other way during oppression due to interests. The capitalist comes in many forms, representing groups, representing ideologies, or representing governments, all with the intention of fulfilling imperialistic goals. And in the wake of these interests, look at all the consequences which have been left behind.” This quote shows how capitalism and imperialism had a long lasting effect on First Nations peoples. It tells us about the lasting legacies of the European Colonization of the Americas, such as racism, assimilation, culture and language loss, depopulation and treaties. The author of this source is showing the frustration and anger against the European who colonized what was the Aboriginal people’s home. It also talks about how capitalism and capitalist interests disrupted the normal way of life for the Native Americans and lead to things like a drastic decrease in the beaver population, whose pelts were sent to Europe to make hats with. Someone who would not agree with this perspective would be a European. They might say their capitalist interests are “human nature” or refuse to take responsibility for what they did to the First Nations Peoples and their culture, by colonizing their land. This source is linked to the European colonization and the fur trade. These events both happened because of European capitalism. The colonization of the Americas was driven by the European desire for Capital and wants to establish new colonies and gain more land for their mother country. The fur trade was a result of this, which led to a decline in the beaver