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John Oskison The Problem Of Old Harjo

439 Words2 Pages

Typically, America is seen as the land of the free. Citizens have freedom of speech, press, assembly, and religion. Legally speaking, a person is entitled to the liberties mentioned above; however, they’re condoned if they do not conform to the values traditionally held by the majority Americans. For instance, everyone is free to practice any religion of their choice, but America is a predominantly Christian nation; therefore, those who practice a different religion are often victimized. In fact, John Oskison highlights America’s hypocrisy in “The Problem of Old Harjo”. In a country, where all are supposed to be welcomed and accepted, Miss Evan and Mrs. Rowell force Harjo to give up one of his wives in order to be accepted into church. Instead of taking the time to build a relationship with Harjo and attempt to understand why he has two …show more content…

In the beginning, Miss Evans has to find out from Mrs. Rowell that Harjo has two wives (Oskison 1037). This reveals that Miss Evans was only concerned in preaching to Harjo that she fails to get to know him, which also shows the contempt she harbors against him. Secondly, despite living within three miles of his home, Miss Evans only visits in order to convince him to give up one of his wives (Oskison 1038). Once again, her actions disclose the fact that she views Harjo has some sort of “salvation project” rather than a fellow human being. Lastly, as a Christian, she is expected to treat others kindly, but she acts contradictory to her faith by labeling Harjo as a bigamist. Precisely, she declared, “The church cannot be defiled by receiving a bigamist into its membership” (Oskison 1040). As a result, from Miss Evans’ behavior, Oskison is able to disseminate America’s true character. Unlike others, he does not excuse or ignore America’s image, instead he confronts

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