Common Read: Discussion 1
Common read themes this year include: awareness of the contemporary American Indian experience, resiliency, transitions, and community. Discuss if and how the book shed light on these themes. Which theme is particularly interesting or relevant in your own experience and why?
The common read book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian was an amazing story. The book did an excellent job of really covering the culture of Native Americans. While growing up my parents did an excellent job of raising my sister and I. I never really understood that there was any difference between being Caucasian and Native American until moving to Rapid City. Personally, I believe it was not until my mid-twenties that I began to realize that people felt differently. Since I began my nursing career I have been “fired” as a nurse by many families, most of those families being Native American. The excuses vary from “to intense, to strict, and not giving them what they require.” Since maturing past the
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However, as a culture they are more true to their families than I have ever seen by the Caucasian culture. Native Americans thrive from family and support one another unconditionally to the end. During a holiday weekend the parks are filled with families of fifty or greater celebrating and enjoying one another. Native Americans are a resilient culture that I learn from on a daily basis. When I go to the room of a patient and there are twelve family members present, I learn their meaning of family. When I see a grandmother raising her grandchildren, I see their commitment to family. Junior’s family is so familiar and transparent. Junior is a suffering poverty stricken child that overcomes the complications of illness. Perhaps, the strength from overcoming illness is what gave him the strength to be different and overcome the obstacles that he faced trying to obtain an
The novel Indian Horse, by Richard Wagamese, depicts the societal injustices done to the Native Americans in the 1960s. The protagonist, Saul, endures an arduous journey that extends throughout his life. At the beginning of his life, he lived with his native family, only to get ripped away from them by an atrocious residential school. The horrid residential school, St. Jeromes, inflicted detrimental damage upon Saul, physically and emotionally. Saul was able to escape the confines of the school through hockey.
Don’t let people talk about your region, when they are not from that region and criticize your country and offend you in someway. The author John Smelcer has been criticizing or stereotyping native americans, and i think he has no right to be writing about a Native American because he has not been born in and description of characters might irritate the native americans which would give a bad reputation for him and his book. I understand that people might say it’s fine because he is adopted by Native American parents , but that does not mean that he himself can write about Native American. In a way that would bother them. But there is no reason to put the Natives in the book ,“The Great Death” as if they are new to the world and never new anything because he is basically stereotyping.
I really enjoyed the way this book was written, it was written in a way that Native Americans have been known to teach each other. They pass their knowledge down to their children through their stories. It was like sitting down with a grandparent and hearing their story of the war. I first picked this book up because the Navaho Indians were mentioned in my AP History class, but because of the time frame we had before the test was taken they were only briefly mentioned. This book grabbed my attention because of the topic and that the main characters point of view didn’t just start with the war it explained his background and why he is the type of person he became.
Hawkeye Reveals American Indian Culture During the late 18th century, two main groups of people lived in New York, European colonialists and American Indians. Their lives were very different. Europeans considered themselves subservient citizens of a faraway country, while American Indians lived as members of nations in villages. They ate different foods, wore different clothing, and had different organization in their families. In The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper, Natty Bumppo (Hawkeye) is a European man living with American Indians during the French and Indian war.
The predisposed notions that surrounded Native Americans were very much entrenched in to the American consciousness, but these writers present both an argument and an alternate perspective to these already established opinions; using their narratives to create a Native voice and identity. The interaction between both the White and Native characters in both novels illustrate these two radically differing ways of life and the reaction they have to each other. But the outcome of each novel leaves the reader questioning these accepted discourses, and not only the ones that surround the Native people but also the White settlers; fully disrupting and complicating the predominant Puritan ideology that existed at that time. James Fenimore Cooper’s
However for people who want in-depth knowledge about the Native Americans there are more suitable, detailed books available. Overall, it is a good summary and review of the Native Americans being removed and their journey to the reserve in Oklahoma. Wallace simplifies the entire timeline of events into a worthwhile
Native Americans Native Americans are very different from other tribes. They eat, live, dress and do many things differently. The things I’m going to be talking about in my interesting paper is What they eat? What they wear? Where they live?
There are two important aspects of Native American culture that I learned this semester. The first is the importance of women in Native communities. Their roles include building, farming, crafting, and decision-making. The men respect women because they are the source of life—human and agriculture. Secondly, Native Americans are some of the most resilient people because of their historical and contemporary oppression from the Spanish settlers and United States government, respectively.
The Legacy of the Historical Oppression of Native Americans To gain a true understanding of Native Americans and their culture, historians must not only examine the trials and tribulations Indians endured in the past, but also the contemporary issues the group faces. Currently, physical illnesses, psychological disorders, economic instability, and negative stereotypes continue to plague Native American communities. Popular sayings, like “Indians will be Indians” and “noble savages,” continue to haunt the culture. The use of the stereotypical Indian or “uncivilized savage” in toys, books, cars, foods, and sports teams, demonstrates how the American society is unfortunately accustomed to the prevalent stereotypes against Native Americans.
Native Americans flourished in North America, but over time white settlers came and started invading their territory. Native Americans were constantly being thrown and pushed off their land. Sorrowfully this continued as the Americans looked for new opportunities and land in the West. When the whites came to the west, it changed the Native American’s lives forever. The Native Americans had to adapt to the whites, which was difficult for them.
What was that practical and spiritual connection between Native Americans and nature? I. What was the practical connection? What is Native American life/ culture like?
So, as you have read, the exploration and colonization of the America’s had many effects on the Native American’s that had already been living there. Whether it was a change to something of their culture, such as religion or the number of their population, the consequences of the Europeans actions has lingered over time, and much of it is still noticeable
This story outlines the way a Native American think about his own culture and analyses how other people in the community use and respond to Native American culture. Mother would create baskets in various shapes and sizes. Baskets offered a variety of purposes and enabled Native Americans to survive. Even though the baskets were highly valuable, they only traded them for few pieces of used
Native Americans are family orientated, placing a lot of what once does on the acceptance from other members of the tribe. Culture activities are important, and participating in such activities is a way to prove trust. After learning more about the culture, I feel that because of the high mistrust Native Americans, are less willing to pursue services. The most surprising fact I learned about Native Americans, is that they do not like to make eye contact. That is a culture difference to me.
I believe that the three pieces we've read have impacted our view on Native American culture and how Native Americans and their heritage is mistreated by today's society. Some members of our society - including some colleges and runway models/designers - mock Native American history and culture. Some mock the culture on accident while others do so on purpose. Today, Native American culture is viewed as ancient but not well respected, runway designers had to discontinue creating outfits similar to that of native Americans because it was viewed as offensive and disrespecting of native american culture.