Buffalo Bill, the pawn shop, and the museum of Native American Culture are three central images in Alexie’s poem, “Evolution.” In the poem Evolution, the author Sherman Alexie demonstrated methodical dilapidation of the Native American population as well as indecent exploitation of their ways of life. Alexie’s use of Buffalo Bill is important because it exemplifies metaphors and responses from both White Americans and Native Americans. Buffalo Bill starts a pawn shop close to the boundary of an Indian reservation, around a street from an alcohol shop. The location of the shop is a significant image since it's located immediately across the boundary from the liquor shop, which is open around the clock (Alexie, 1992). The location was advantageously …show more content…
situated to indicate that Native American population abuse alcohol. The Buffalo Bill is an image applied to represent the government of America and its white population. Sherman Alexie established a protracted allegory in the entire poem that emphasizes the deception that the government of America assumed against the Native American population and the succeeding forceful acquisition of land and identity, which they were forced to tolerate. Native Americans have been methodically disadvantaged and sidelined tracing back to the seventeenth century, during the period after which European immigrants arrived in America and seized their property such as land, identity, customs, and civilizations. Furthermore, Sherman Alexie uses the pawn shop as a symbol to vividly represent the extent to which Native Americans will persevere in an attempt to get money to purchase alcohol.
Alexie sought to illustrate that the Native Americans pawn all their belongings and properties including television sets, videocassette recorders and ultimately their own traditional garments. Additionally, it is suggested that immediately after the Native Americans received their money and exited the pawn shops, they would rush to liquor stores to purchase …show more content…
alcohol. In the poem, Alexie states, "the Indians come running in with jewelry television sets, a VCR, a full-length beaded buckskin outfit it took Inez Muse 12 years to finish. Buffalo Bill takes everything the Indians have to offer, keeps it all catalogs and filed in a storage room. The Indians pawn their hands, saving the thumbs for last, they pawn their skeletons, falling endlessly from the skin and when the last Indian has pawned everything but his heart, Buffalo Bill takes that for twenty bucks " (Alexie, 1992). Hence, the pawn shop illustrates the level of desperation among the Native Americans caused by oppression from non-Native Americans. The Museum of Native American Culture represents greediness by Buffalo Bill.
Once Buffalo Bill seized all the properties and belongings of the Native Americans such as land and traditional garments, he established a museum and demanded that the Indians pay five dollars per head for their visit to the museum (Alexie, 1992). This picture represents the numerous occasions when the Native Americans’ way of life has been illegitimately depicted by the non-Native American communities. These cultures are often depicted by individuals or communities that bear no decency or connection to the Native Americans. In fact, they do this with an interest in financial benefits without any advantage to the Native Indians. Similarly, the Museum of Native American Culture also illustrates the methodical deprivation and oppression of the Native Americans. This is an uncommon, however, a strong type of oppression. The mass media and the government are the present central force of the subjugation and quieting of the Native American communities. It can be concluded that it is the contemporary Buffalo Bill and whereas it is not evident what preventions should be put in place to stop this, it is important for the Native American people to repossess their identity and demonstrate to the universe who they actually
are. Reference Alexie, S. (1992). Evolution. In PORTABLE Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing (9th ed., pp. 523-524). Cengage Learning. Retrieved March 23, 2018, from https://www.betheluniversityonline.net/cps/default.aspx?SectionID=5682&tabid=154#3
Pages one to sixty- nine in Indian From The Inside: Native American Philosophy and Cultural Renewal by Dennis McPherson and J. Douglas Rabb, provides the beginning of an in-depth analysis of Native American cultural philosophy. It also states the ways in which western perspective has played a role in our understanding of Native American culture and similarities between Western culture and Native American culture. The section of reading can be divided into three lenses. The first section focus is on the theoretical understanding of self in respect to the space around us. The second section provides a historical background into the relationship between Native Americans and British colonial power. The last section focus is on the affiliation of otherworldliness that exist between
Talking Back to Civilization: Indian Voices from the Progressive Era edited by Frederick E. Hoxie is a book which begins with an introduction into the life of Charles Eastman and a brief overview of the history of Native Americans and their fight for justice and equal rights, it then continues by describing the different ways and avenues of speaking for Indian rights and what the activists did. This leads logically into the primary sources which “talk back” to the society which had overrun their own. The primary sources immerse the reader into another way of thinking and cause them to realize what our societal growth and even foundation has caused to those who were the true natives. The primary sources also expand on the main themes of the book which are outlines in the introduction. They are first and most importantly talking back to the “pale faces”, Indian education, religion, American Indian policy, the image of the Indians presented in America. The other chapters in the book further expanded on these ideas. These themes will be further discussed in the following chapters along with a review of this
The depiction of Native Americans to the current day youth in the United States is a colorful fantasy used to cover up an unwarranted past. Native people are dressed from head to toe in feathers and paint while dancing around fires. They attempt to make good relations with European settlers but were then taken advantage of their “hippie” ways. However, this dramatized view is particularly portrayed through media and mainstream culture. It is also the one perspective every person remembers because they grew up being taught these views. Yet, Colin Calloway the author of First Peoples: A Documentary Survey of American Indian History, wishes to bring forth contradicting ideas. He doesn’t wish to disprove history; he only wishes to rewrite it.
Native American’s place in United States history is not as simple as the story of innocent peace loving people forced off their lands by racist white Americans in a never-ending quest to quench their thirst for more land. Accordingly, attempts to simplify the indigenous experience to nothing more than victims of white aggression during the colonial period, and beyond, does an injustice to Native American history. As a result, historians hoping to shed light on the true history of native people during this period have brought new perceptive to the role Indians played in their own history. Consequently, the theme of power and whom controlled it over the course of Native American/European contact is being presented in new ways. Examining the evolving
The article, “Native Reactions to the invasion of America”, is written by a well-known historian, James Axtell to inform the readers about the tragedy that took place in the Native American history. All through the article, Axtell summarizes the life of the Native Americans after Columbus acquainted America to the world. Axtell launches his essay by pointing out how Christopher Columbus’s image changed in the eyes of the public over the past century. In 1892, Columbus’s work and admirations overshadowed the tears and sorrows of the Native Americans. However, in 1992, Columbus’s undeserved limelight shifted to the Native Americans when the society rediscovered the history’s unheard voices and became much more evident about the horrific tragedy of the Natives Indians.
Sherman Alexie grew up in Wellpinit, Washington as a Spokane/Coeur d’Alene tribal member (Sherman Alexie). He began his personal battle with substance abuse in 1985 during his freshman year at Jesuit Gonzaga University. The success of his first published work in 1990 incentivized Alexie to overcome his alcohol abuse. “In his short-story and poetry collections, Alexie illuminates the despair, poverty, and alcoholism that often shape the lives of Native Americans living on reservations” (Sherman Alexie). When developing his characters, Alexie often gives them characteristics of substance abuse, poverty and criminal behaviors in an effort to evoke sadness with his readers. Alexie utilizes other art forms, such as film, music, cartoons, and the print media, to bombard mainstream distortion of Indian culture and to redefine Indianness. “Both the term Indian and the stereotypical image are created through histories of misrepresentation—one is a simulated word without a tribal real and the other an i...
American Indians shaped their critique of modern America through their exposure to and experience with “civilized,” non-Indian American people. Because these Euro-Americans considered traditional Indian lifestyle savage, they sought to assimilate the Indians into their civilized culture. With the increase in industrialization, transportation systems, and the desire for valuable resources (such as coal, gold, etc.) on Indian-occupied land, modern Americans had an excuse for “the advancement of the human race” (9). Euro-Americans moved Indians onto reservations, controlled their education and practice of religion, depleted their land, and erased many of their freedoms. The national result of this “conquest of Indian communities” was a steady decrease of Indian populations and drastic increase in non-Indian populations during the nineteenth century (9). It is natural that many American Indians felt fearful that their culture and people were slowly vanishing. Modern America to American Indians meant the destruction of their cultural pride and demise of their way of life.
In “This Is What It Means To Say Phoenix, Arizona,” Alexie creates a story that captures the common stereotypes of Native Americans. For instance, in the story the narrator states, “Who does have money on a reservation, except the cigarette and fireworks salespeople?” (Alexie). This quotation shows that the narrator addresses the idea that all Native Americans must own businesses that sell fireworks and/ or cigarettes in order to be successful. In this example, Victor is shown to not identify with the Native Americans because he does not pursue the same job opportunities as many Native Americans do. Victor's character is used as a contrast to the stereotypes that , there he represents reality. Another instance in which the author incorporates a stereotype about Native Americans is when Thomas-Builds-the-Fire first makes conversation with Victor. Thomas-Builds-the-Fire informs Victor about the news of Victor's ...
The systematic racism and discrimination in America has long lasting effects that began back when Europeans first stepped foot on American soil is still visible today but only not written into the law. This racism has lead to very specific consequences on the Native people in today’s modern world, and while the racism is maybe not as obvious it is still very present. These modern Native peoples fight against the feeling of community as a Native person, and feeling entirely alone and not a part of it. The poem “The Reservation” by Susan Cloud and “The Real Indian Leans Against” by Chrystos examine the different effects and different settings of how their cultures survived but also how so much was lost for them within their own identity.
In the short story “What You Pawn I Will Redeem”, Sherman Alexie uses the two most well known stereotypes of Native Americans today, that they are alcoholics and homeless. These are more modern day stereotypes but they fall under the the main stereotype, that Native Americans are helpless and uncivilized. Alexie’s short story focuses on a character named Jackson Jackson, who happens to be both homeless and an alcoholic. Jackson is walking past a pawn shop when he notices his grandmother’s regalia that was stolen from his family fifty years ago. The owner of the pawn shop gives Jackson twenty-four hours to come up with the money for the regalia. The story takes us throughout his journey which consist mostly of Jackson buying alcohol, food, and even some lottery tickets. Jackson would acquire money through a variety of situations right after getting money he ended
“What You Pawn I Will Redeem,” by Sherman Alexie gives readers a look at the life of homeless, easygoing, middle aged Native American, Jackson Jackson. The story, which is set in Seattle, describes the conditions that Jackson finds himself in. Alexie’s choice of motifs emphasizes the significance of cultural and historical references. With these concepts in mind, the reader is taken through a journey of self-realization. “What You Pawn I Will Redeem” narrates the internal struggle Jackson feels trying to figure out his personal identity as a Native American. The story chronicles situations that illustrate the common stereotypes about Natives. Through Jackson’s humble personality, the reader can grasp his true feeling towards White people, which
Similarly, in Alexie's "Evolution", the Native Americans pawn off their entire culture to Buffalo Bill, who represents whites who generalize and stereotype Natives, so that, in the end, even the most significant pieces of who they are are gone. They start by giving up unimportant things for money, such as electronics. However, this quickly escalates to culturally important items, such as a cherished buckskin outfit. When the Natives are tricked into trading these treasures, it rids them of their identity and shows they have little cultural-pride, a result of damaging dehumanization. Not only do irreplaceable material items get pawned off, but pieces of themselves are traded too. Finally, when the Natives have given up nearly everything, they pawn “[their] heart[s]” and “Buffalo Bill takes that for twenty bucks” (Alexie 12). A heart is a piece of a person that allows them to live and feel happy; no one can be prideful without a it. Sadly, it is taken by whites as any other item suggesting that it is
In American Indian Stories, University of Nebraska Press Lincoln and London edition, the author, Zitkala-Sa, tries to tell stories that depicted life growing up on a reservation. Her stories showed how Native Americans reacted to the white man’s ways of running the land and changing the life of Indians. “Zitkala-Sa was one of the early Indian writers to record tribal legends and tales from oral tradition” (back cover) is a great way to show that the author’s stories were based upon actual events in her life as a Dakota Sioux Indian. This essay will describe and analyze Native American life as described by Zitkala-Sa’s American Indian Stories, it will relate to Native Americans and their interactions with American societies, it will discuss the major themes of the book and why the author wrote it, it will describe Native American society, its values and its beliefs and how they changed and it will show how Native Americans views other non-Natives.
Sherman Alexie is a Spokane/Coeur d’Alene tribal member who grew up in the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, Washington. He is a preeminent Native American poet, novelist, performer and filmmaker. Alexie is given high praise for his works which depicts contemporary Native
Wasting no time, Alexie literally begins his short story with this contradictory stereotype. Alexie expresses of William: “He was an enrolled member of the Spokane Indian tribe, but he was also a full recognized member of the notebook-computer tribe and the security-checkpoint tribe and the rental-car tribe, and the hotel-shuttle-bus tribe and the cell-phone-roaming-charge-tribe” (Alexie 53), highlighting the supposedly contrary lives and depictions of these two “types” of people, both categorizations of which William falls under. Any stereotyping of him that is imposed by the reader is quickly arrested with our interpersonal experience with William that Alexie provides us, allowing us to literally read his