Character Analysis: The Soft-Hearted Sioux

Honestly, what is loyalty? One can’t even begin to define such a word. It’s one single seven letter word yet, it has a deep profound definition. As a matter of fact, typically one does not use loyalty until they are put to the test. Without a doubt, the test can be anything. Consider the following, staying a devoted fan to the patriots or staying allegiant to your best friend. When he gets down to the despicable core of tough times one can see who 's truly loyal. Justice works the same way. For instance, one can be guilty and be granted freedom or vise versa. In the novel, Montana 1948, Larry Watson reveals conflict between two necessary values loyalty and justice which is exemplified throughout.

As many of you probably know, most Americans aren’t very knowledgeable about the people who were here before them. The Native Americans. There are so many misconceptions and just plain wrong beliefs of the Lakota and their way of life. Some Americans only see the Lakota Indians as savage, uncivilized, uneducated, conquered people who were dependent on others. Very few really understand who the Lakota were and how their way of life was different from Americans today.

Rolo shared a story about his relationship with Jesus. He had no connection with Ojibwa culture. He grew up Catholic. He mother was religious. It was not until Rolo met a woman from Germany. She came to the US to meet ‘real Indians.’ She asked if she could touch his face once he admitted he was Indian. He had realization that he may look indian but he did not feel like it. That was when he began his journey in finding his Ojibwa identity. Being ‘Native’ and ‘Christian’ are sometimes seen at both end of a spectrum. It’s one of the most challenging issue among Native Americans. For five hundred years, Native Americans endured colonial power which resulted in separation between those who are traditionalist and progressives as Rolo stated,” Indians have deep spiritual traditions so it should come as no surprise that even as Christian missionaries were participating in the cultural genocide of the tribes, individual Indian families were drawn to the faith and Christianity has been a very effective tool of assimilation in the cities.”

Where Jacobson works with animalistic symbolism, Morrisseau expresses the Ojibway worldview within his work through the use of narratives. Morrisseau’s grandfather Potan was known as a Midewinini and Jissakan, a shaking tent seer, and was well versed in the traditional stories and teachings of his people. One aspect of the Ojibway world view is the importance of narrative, which was told by the elders of the community. These narratives “were instrumental in teaching about history and morality. The Ojibwa narratives were used to pass on knowledge,” (Wobodistch, 15) This oral tradition that was meant to carry on the wisdom of one generation to the next. The narratives “were also intended to be entertaining so that the audience, which was supposed

However the textbooks have been improving in the way they have been presenting their information on the Native Americans

The Lakota culture has seven virtues, including humility. C.S. Lewis, author of Narnia, once said, “humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less”. Many people associate humility with embarrassment and hanging your head. If you look at the actual definition of humility, it states the following; “a modest or low view of one’s own importance”. In the older times, humility was understood as what the definition is, modesty. Today, humility is now understood as disgraceful and shameful.

A person’s culture is their way of life. From a young age, we learn to act within the norms of our culture and to be truly ethnocentric. What if one day someone came into your life and told you everything you were doing your entire life was wrong and stupid? Brian Moore’s Black Robe, tells the story of Laforgue, a Jesuit priest from 17th Century Québec who travels to an unfamiliar land called New France. Laforgue’s goal is to convert Algonquin Native Americans into God fearing Christians. Laforgue faces many cultural misunderstandings with the Natives along his journey; he finds the most difficulties understanding the native’s concept of death, why they value dreams, and overcoming ethnocentrism.

In his book, The Lakota Way, Joseph M. Marshall III describes bravery as “Facing the possibility, and sometimes the probability, of death and great bodily harm as without a doubt one of the most daunting realities any human being can confront.” Bravery was essential to the survival of the early people of the Lakota Nation. It takes bravery even today to trek through life and to be successful. There are many ways for people to be brave today. Of the twelve Lakota virtues described by Marshall, bravery was most important in the survival of his people.

Respect is a big part of our lives still. Although the presence of many of the virtuous Native American values is very meager today, this one still exists as a miniscule glimmer across our lives. One must have respect for others to first have respect for themselves. You make a choice of how people will see you: as a incorrigible person, or as a respectful person. People will usually treat you accordingly.

The name “Sioux” is short for “Nadouessioux”, meaning “little snakes”, given to them by their spiteful long time rival the Ojibwa tribe. The Sioux community was divided into a organized nation of seven different, smaller tribes; later becoming known as: Oceti Sakowin, which translates into “Seven Council Fire” in the Sioux indigenous language. To keep their history alive, the Sioux practiced oral tradition in sharing their past, through the Siouan language and occasionally, they communicated through sign language. They were a dominant tribe in Minnesota that later migrated continuously through the northern Great Plains region following buffalo patterns. The Sioux depended on bison for most of their food source, clothing, and shelter. They

Tyonajanegen was part of the Oneida tribe. The Oneida were religious people that were a part of the Iroquois Confederacy. She was also married to a very important man, Han Yerry. Yerry was born in the Oneida tribe, but he was also part German and Mohawk descent. Yerry was the chief warrior of the wolf clan, one of the several branches of the Oneida. The wolf clan, known as the pathfinders, guides people in the way their Creator wants them to. She is a brave warrior because she fought in the Battle of Oriskany, was messenger for rebels, and was the first Indian woman to fight for America.

Who is the single greatest writer of American literature? Furthermore, what text upholds said writer as the greatest? Most people would argue that perhaps Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, or even William Faulkner are top candidates for the title of the greatest writer in American literature. However, how many people would nominate a woman? How many people would nominate an indigenous woman? Not many people would argue that Zikala-Sa’s “The Soft-Hearted Sioux” qualifies her as the single greatest writer of American literature.

American actress Estelle Parsons once said, “It is so important to get respect for what you do and at the same time give it;” respect is also one of the twelve virtues of the Lakota Nation. Respect is one of the revered and more important values that Native Americans still live by today. Because they hold a significant place in Lakota society, special respect is to be given to elders. Both children and adults must give respect to others to be able to receive respect.

To those living in British America in the 1700’s, religion was a central fixture of everyday life. One’s denomination was intrinsically tied up in one’s ethnic and social identity, and local churches in the mid-Atlantic depended upon the participation and donations of their parishioners to survive. However, as the 18th century progressed, poorer farmers and ministers across the diverse sects of colonial America came to resent the domination of church life by the upper class. In a parallel development, a split had grown between the rationalists, who were typically wealthy, educated and influential men who represented the status quo, and the evangelicals, who disdained the impersonal pretention of the rationalists and promoted a spiritual and

In Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, Dee Brown delivers the reader with a Native American history of the west. Providing the narrative with historical accounts and primary sources, Brown offers a unique view into the past. Brown’s book offers several fascinating accounts of Native American culture during the nineteenth century. The reader should analyze the aspects offered by Brown to understand how the author’s book provides a unique history of the Native American West.