Well, this book is not what I expected. Although, I don't quite know what I expected from this book to begin with. Charles Frazier is a wonderful writer and used eloquent words and description to portray the Cherokee Culture, but itself, as a book with a story, I expected more. I understand that this book was not meant to have a plot, just tell of the adventurous life of an orphan boy, but Frazier could have done something more to make this book more enjoyable to read. The wording was phenomenal, the description was out of this world, but the story was disappointing and the message was depressing. I found myself flipping through pages faster and faster not because I was enjoying what I read, but because I was looking for something to hold on
It is an honest recount of events that lead to a downfall in the indigenous community where they lost an unreal amount of power. It is without questions that Daschuk makes his points heard, while being clear and concise and his arguments are valid. I learned an incredible amount about the Indigenous society from reading this book and although Daschuk does not touch on it, I feel if young people read this it would help with the racism in today’s society because they would be further educated on what it is indigenous people had to go
The short story “Cherokee” written by Ron Rash is about a young married couple fighting to save their truck by gambling their last one hundred and fifty-seven dollars in slot machines at a casino in North Carolina. Rash did an impeccable job at creating two ordinary, everyday people by portraying their lives as the working poor of America. The two characters, Danny and Lisa, both work; however, they are barely making it by and fell behind on their truck payments. Throughout the short story is observed a theme of freedom, or lack thereof, not only through the plot but also through psychology and economics.
John G. Burnett, author of The Cherokee Removal Through the Eyes of a Private Soldier, explains in extreme detail about what he experienced while on duty during the forced removal of Indians from their home territory. He first begins by stating that this event was the “Most brutal order in the history of American warfare” (350). He carries on to say that Cherokees were arrested and forcibly removed from their homes. They were then loaded onto a total of 645 wagons and began the journey west. During this time, the chief of the Cherokee nation was John Ross. On this journey, they began to experience acute weather conditions such as sleet and “blinding” snow storms. At night, they often slept in the wagons or on the ground without viable sources of heat. Due to the extreme conditions, some died from complications of pneumonia, cold, and exposure. A prime example was Ross’ wife, Quatie. Mrs. Ross died while giving her source of warmth to a sickly child in need and going without. Burnett goes on to say that he witness some children suffering from the cold so he had given them his coat to stay warm. The journey to the west ended March 26, 1839 with an
The tragedy of the Cherokee nation has haunted the legacy of Andrew Jackson"'"s Presidency. The events that transpired after the implementation of his Indian policy are indeed heinous and continually pose questions of morality for all generations. Ancient Native American tribes were forced from their ancestral homes in an effort to increase the aggressive expansion of white settlers during the early years of the United States. The most notable removal came after the Indian Removal Act of 1830. The Cherokee, whose journey was known as the '"'Trail of Tears'"', and the four other civilized tribes, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek and Seminole, were forced to emigrate to lands west of the Mississippi River, to what is now day Oklahoma, against their will. During the journey westward, over 60,000 Indians were forced from their homelands. Approximately 4000 Cherokee Indians perished during the journey due to famine, disease, and negligence. The Cherokees to traveled a vast distance under force during the arduous winter of 1838-1839.# This is one of the saddest events in American history, yet we must not forget this tragedy.
Democracy can be traced back before the coming of Christ. Throughout Greece during the sixth century democracy was in its earliest stages and as the millenniums would pass the power of government by the people would show distinct alterations. This is evident when analyzing The Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears by Theda Perdue and Michael D. Green. These authors illustrate how the U.S government adjusts policies from that of assimilating the Native American Indians to that of removing them from their homelands and forcibly causing the Cherokee nation to relocate themselves west of the Mississippi. In further depth Perdue and Green portray though vivid description how the government would show disloyalty and how that caused division between the tribal members of the Cherokee people. This endeavor of travel and animosity of the Indians would become known as the Trail of Tears.
The author presented the information in a very solid way and sectioned it out very well. I understood what he was trying to explain. It was somewhat a long book but very much full of knowledge and history that in spirit is still alive today. We may not have slavery like it was then, but we still deal with racism and prejudice daily.
The Native Americans of the southeast live in a variety of environments. The environments range from the southern Appalachian Mountains, to the Mississippi River valley, to the Louisiana and Alabama swamps, and the Florida wetlands. These environments were bountiful with various species of plant and animal life, enabling the Native American peoples to flourish. “Most of the Native Americans adopted large-scale agriculture after 900 A.D, and some also developed large towns and highly centralized social and political structures.” In the first half of the 1600s Europeans encountered these native peoples. Both cultures encountered new plants, animals, and diseases. However, the Indians received more diseases compared to the few new diseases to the Europeans. The new diseases resulted in a massive loss of Native Americans, including the Southeast Indians which had never encountered the new diseases. Three of the main tribes in the southeast were the Cherokee and the Creek. They were part of a group of southeast tribes that were removed from their lands. These tribes later became known as “The Five Civilized Tribes because of their progress and achievements.”
Before there was a United States of America, there were tribes of Native Americans living off the land. In the southeastern part of the country, the largest group of Native Americans were the Cherokee people (Boulware, 2009). Cherokees are networked through vast kinship lines that separates them from other tribes in the region (Boulware, 2009). They once occupied a territory that ran throughout the Appalachian Mountains (Boulware, 2009). Cherokees spoke a common language known as Iroquoian, different from the surrounding tribes (Boulware, 2009).
advantage of the rich black soil for farming. Corn was their main source of food,
What I wish Momaday would have done to finish the book, would have been to explain how connected he feels to his tribe after he reached the end of his journey. I felt like there was not a proper ending, other than reaching his grandmothers grave. What does he do after he reaches the grave? I also wish Momaday tried to connect with the reader on more of a personal level. I enjoyed his stories, but I feel like the personal paragraphs for each story was lacking. He wrote a lot in the second person, which is good for the story telling aspect. I wish he had elaborated more on the meaning and why he chose the stories and not left the interpretation up to the reader. Personally, I have learned to not leave my writings open ended, as they always seem to be misinterpreted.
I found the book to be easy, exciting reading because the story line was very realistic and easily relatable. This book flowed for me to a point when, at times, it was difficult to put down. Several scenes pleasantly caught me off guard and some were extremely hilarious, namely, the visit to Martha Oldcrow. I found myself really fond of the char...
The Cherokee people called this journey “The Trail of Tears”, because of its devastating effects. The trail of tears started in 1836 and ended in 1839. The Cherokee walked about 2,200 miles(3,500km). The Cherokee were Helpless and Defenseless during the trail of tears.
The ways in which the author could strengthen the book, in my opinion, is instead all the descriptive, to me meaningless points as how they were coloring themselves, the author should have put a little bit more facts in there to make it more documentary. Anyhow, overall the book has strength in letting the reader understand the history from both sides, whites and Indians. Many people have different views on the persecution of Native Americans, some think that it was all Indians’ fault and that they caused their own suffering, which I think is absolutely ridiculous, because they were not the ones who invaded. And Native Americans had every right to stand up for the land that was theirs.
The debate over the legality of sovereignty and acquired lands from the native Americans, specifically the Cherokee, has long been debated. The issues involved have included treaties, land sold, and the right of the Government to physically enforce their rules on Indian land "sovereignty". This paper will examine the strategy used by the Federal Governments, the State Governments as well as those of the Cherokee Indians. The three-way relationship as well as the issues will examine how the interpretation of the Constitution changed society prior to the year of 1840.
"The Cherokee people tell the story of a young boy who has been badly wronged by someone he considered a friend. The boy, hurt and furious, tells his grandfather about the incident. His grandfather nods and replies, "At times, I too have felt hatred for those who do great harm and seem to feel no sorrow about it. But hate wears a person down and does not hurt the enemy. It is like taking poison and wishing the enemy would die. I have struggled with these feelings many times. It is as if two wolves live inside me; they live inside you, too. One wolf is good. He is peaceful, generous, compassionate, and wise. He lives in harmony with all those around him and does not easily take offense. He fights only when it is right to do so. But the other