The Native American trickster tale with Ikto and Iya and Rowlandson’s account on her kidnapping are both meant to portray the villains. Iya would eat towns of people, however he is also recognized for keeping the land from over-population; similarly, the Indians in Rowlandson’s story are at first viewed as barbarous, but as time goes on their good nature is also portrayed. Iya and the Indians are similar in that they are both villains in the beginning, but their benevolence is disclosed as the stories progress, which indicates open-mindedness, or a willingness to consider (new) ideas unbiased, of the narrators because they are willing to judge even a villain objectively, and furthermore it matches the trajectory of the Native American from …show more content…
Iya is a villain because he eats people, which supposedly makes him a public enemy. However, ironically, he seems to be a very naive giant in the tale, rather than some dangerous villain. When asked about what he fears, he replies, “the sound of rattles, and drums, the hooting of owls, and the shouts of men--all these I fear” (White 9). These are things that represent war, and the fact that Iya fears them is surprising because as someone who literally eats people, he shouldn’t be afraid of wars. However, because of the fluid perception of good and evil, a villain can at the same time have a sensible and relatable nature. The natives’ ambivalent attitude towards Iya is further shown at the end of the story: “Iya was killed and that is why the entire country is now so full of people that it is impossible to find any open spaces anymore” (White 10). It shows that despite the apparent evilness of what he does, Iya keeps the land from over-population. Ikto in killing Iya creates new problems. In fact, even though the natives praise Ikto for killing Iya, Deloria notes that “there seems to be at least a bit of mixed emotion” (White 10) in their praise. The natives think that Ikto’s behavior is also questionable because they believe that anyone, including a mortal enemy, can …show more content…
The Indians during the raid are brutal and merciless. She describes them as “murderous wretches [who] went on, burning, and destroying” (White 16), and their party at night “place[d] a lively resemblance of hell” (White 17). The image that she has of the Indians is very gloomy at first, and it is quite justified. As the story unfolds, however, Rowlandson sees more and more of the humane side of her imprisoners. She starts addressing them with more neutral words like “Indians” rather than “Barbarous Creatures” or “Wolves”. Perhaps she is softened by the fact that they have made an effort to bury her child, or that they haven’t harmed her anymore. Later on, when she meets Philip’s crew by the river, she writes, “I fell a weeping which was the first time to my remembrance, that I wept before them” (White 19). It further shows that Rowlandson truly believes that the Indians are relatable people, because her weeping is a way to gain sympathy from them. If she still thinks of them as brutal villains who wants to kill her, she would panic and despair, but there isn’t any of that in her language. Indeed, the Indians turn out to be friendly. Rowlandson is not reluctant to appreciate that; she writes that “[she] has never tasted pleasanter meat in [her] life” (White 19) in regard to the
In the book Bad Indians, Miranda talks about the many issues Indigenous People go through. Miranda talks about the struggles Indigenous people go through; however, she talks about them in the perspective of Native Americans. Many people learn about Indigenous People through classrooms and textbooks, in the perspective of White people. In Bad Indians, Miranda uses different literary devices to show her perspective of the way Indigenous People were treated, the issues that arose from missionization, as well as the violence that followed through such issues. Bad Indians is an excellent example that shows how different history is told in different perspectives.
Inventing the Savage: The Social Construct of Native American Criminality. Luana Ross. Austin: University of Texas Press. 1998.
Perpetuation of Native American Stereotypes in Children's Literature Caution should be used when selecting books including Native Americans, due to the lasting images that books and pictures provide to children. This paper will examine the portrayal of Native Americans in children's literature. I will discuss specific stereotypes that are present and should be avoided, as well as positive examples. I will also highlight evaluative criteria that will be useful in selecting appropriate materials for children and provide examples of good and bad books. Children will read many books as they grow up.
In the story “Listening to Ghosts” Malea Powell talks about the native Americans on challenges and educational practices. The story is about the native American living in America before the British came to ruin their lives. This effect caused the Native Americans to disappear for good and became shadows. Afterwards there were different theories about the beliefs such as white guy philosopher's theory and western culture theory.The white guy’s philosopher's theory states that the stories were special and central civilized.Western culture, people thought that they were “savages” and “civilized”.
God displays his protective powers in various ways. She is shown to be in despair numerous times. So many things happen that keep chipping away at her spirit. The Indians come and ransack the town, basically burning it to the ground. She is separated from all of her children except for one and even in that moment, her daughter dies in her arms after being wounded by a gunshot. Rowlandson herself is injured and is forced to keep travelling despite her conditions. Chaos seems to surround her at every angle. She is initially given a very miniscule amount of water to sustain her on the trip along with some nuts and crumbs. Rowlandson states that “… still the Lord still upheld me...” and also that “he hurt me one hand, and proceeded to heal me with the other”. She believes that due to her people being unfaithful, the Lord is now punishing them so that they can repent. But her being puritan and a chosen one, instead of being killed off, she is preserved and is allowed to get back in God’s good standing. At one point she even thinks of attempting suicide and ending all the misery but she states that thanks to God, she came back her senses and reason to know that she couldn’t go through with such an act. God was using the Indians as agents to punish the Puritans and in doing so, whenever the opportunity for freedom arrived and for some reason the opportunity was not seen
For instance Kupperman writes that the problems in this partnership “stemmed from actors on all sides…[the Natives] assumed that it would be easy to manipulate [the colonists]…Jamestown’s leaders…believed that they could construct a society by enforcing…discipline” (Kupperman 8). Although the Natives had an agenda, they were not at fault to defend their land. Kupperman, representing the view of the American public, attempts to avert the colonist’s responsibility from wrongdoing. However, U.S citizens must accept their ancestors’ role in the brutal treatment of Natives, who were looking for freedom just as the settlers. Unlike Kupperman, Morgan faulted the erroneously prideful English, stating to an English Colonist “you knew you were civilized and [the Indians] were savages…[but they] lived from the land more abundantly…So you tortured them, burned their villages, burned their cornfields” (Morgan 90). He sees the settlers’ self-serving, vindictive role in these disputes. Regardless of the American guilt for the torment of the Natives, Morgan puts the reader into the shoes of a colonist, utilizing the 2nd person, to have them experience the injustice of the
Interestingly although she feared and reviled the Indians she states that not one of them offered the least abuse of unchastity to her. Her captors never sexually molested or violated her. Rowlandson learned to adapt and strove to make it thought her captivity alive. She learned how to gather food for herself. Tolerate the ways of the Indians, and make clothes for the tribe. She even decided to stay with the Indians when given the chance to escape. “Rowlandson refused them choosing to stay put and let God choose when she was fully redeemed and ready to be released”
The function of religion plays a significant role in the narrative, especially the dissimilarities between the narrator's religious beliefs and the "Other" religion of her captors. More specifically the Puritan ideology of the narrator reveals the differences between religions and cultures in this novel. History has shown that although the Puritans fled to America for religious freedom, they brutalized those not of their religion and customs. After taken into captivity by the American Indians, or "ravenous bears (14) as Rowlandson describes, she conveys her strong Puritan values, by criticizing and demeaning the Indian's religion, or as illustrated by Rowlandson, their complete lack of values, morals and religious conviction. Rowlandson portrays the Indians as a horrific species; however what Rowlandson considers evil and frightening, may be the ideals of other human beings. For instance Rowlandson, in her first encounter with the Indians, is quick to remark, "Oh the roaring, and singing, and dancing, and yelling of those black creature in the night, which made the place a lively resemblance of hell " (14). It is obvious from this statement that Rowlandson, because of her strong principles, immediately judges those diffe...
...n the war-cries came" (295). This was a very tense and scary time for the Ingalls family because they didn't know what the Indians were planning to do to the settlers on the prairie. The Indians were very memorable moments to Laura since they struck so much fear and awe in her.
In “The Truth about Stories”, Thomas King, demonstrate connection between the Native storytelling and the authentic world. He examines various themes in the stories such as; oppression, racism, identity and discrimination. He uses the creational stories and implies in to the world today and points out the racism and identity issues the Native people went through and are going through. The surroundings shape individuals’ life and a story plays vital roles. How one tells a story has huge impact on the listeners and readers. King uses sarcastic tone as he tells the current stories of Native people and his experiences. He points out to the events and incidents such as the government apologizing for the colonialism, however, words remains as they are and are not exchanged for actions. King continuously alerts the reader about taking actions towards change as people tend to be ignorant of what is going around them. At the end people give a simple reason that they were not aware of it. Thus, the author constantly reminds the readers that now they are aware of the issue so they do not have any reason to be ignorant.
In Thomas King’s novel, The Inconvenient Indian, the story of North America’s history is discussed from his original viewpoint and perspective. In his first chapter, “Forgetting Columbus,” he voices his opinion about how he feel towards the way white people have told America’s history and portraying it as an adventurous tale of triumph, strength and freedom. King hunts down the evidence needed to reveal more facts on the controversial relationship between the whites and natives and how it has affected the culture of Americans. Mainly untangling the confusion between the idea of Native Americans being savages and whites constantly reigning in glory. He exposes the truth about how Native Americans were treated and how their actual stories were
For example, in the local school, stereotypes such as the image of the ‘wild man’ are consolidated by claiming that there was cannibalism among the indigenous people of the northwest coast (Soper-Jones 2009, 20; Robinson 2010, 68f.). Moreover, native people are still considered to be second-class citizens, which is pointed out by Lisamarie’s aunt Trudy, when she has been harassed by some white guys in a car: “[Y]ou’re a mouthy Indian, and everyone thinks we’re born sluts. Those guys would have said you were asking for it and got off scot-free”
In “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson,” Mary Rowlandson, a Puritan mother from Lancaster, Massachusetts, recounts the invasion of her town by Indians in 1676 during “King Philip’s War,” when the Indians attempted to regain their tribal lands. She describes the period of time where she is held under captivity by the Indians, and the dire circumstances under which she lives. During these terrible weeks, Mary Rowlandson deals with the death of her youngest child, the absence of her Christian family and friends, the terrible conditions that she must survive, and her struggle to maintain her faith in God. She also learns how to cope with the Indians amongst whom she lives, which causes her attitude towards them to undergo several changes. At first, she is utterly appalled by their lifestyle and actions, but as time passes she grows dependent upon them, and by the end of her captivity, she almost admires their ability to survive the harshest times with a very minimal amount of possessions and resources. Despite her growing awe of the Indian lifestyle, her attitude towards them always maintains a view that they are the “enemy.”
Louise Erdrich’s short story “American horse” is a literary piece written by an author whose works emphasize the American experience for a multitude of different people from a plethora of various ethnic backgrounds. While Erdrich utilizes a full arsenal of literary elements to better convey this particular story to the reader, perhaps the two most prominent are theme and point of view. At first glance this story seems to portray the struggle of a mother who has her son ripped from her arms by government authorities; however, if the reader simply steps back to analyze the larger picture, the theme becomes clear. It is important to understand the backgrounds of both the protagonist and antagonists when analyzing theme of this short story. Albetrine, who is the short story’s protagonist, is a Native American woman who characterizes her son Buddy as “the best thing that has ever happened to me”. The antagonist, are westerners who work on behalf of the United States Government. Given this dynamic, the stage is set for a clash between the two forces. The struggle between these two can be viewed as a microcosm for what has occurred throughout history between Native Americans and Caucasians. With all this in mind, the reader can see that the theme of this piece is the battle of Native Americans to maintain their culture and way of life as their homeland is invaded by Caucasians. In addition to the theme, Erdrich’s usage of the third person limited point of view helps the reader understand the short story from several different perspectives while allowing the story to maintain the ambiguity and mysteriousness that was felt by many Natives Americans as they endured similar struggles. These two literary elements help set an underlying atmos...
She observed the Indian attack, and she described her suffering as God’s will. As she said, “when God calls a Person to any thing, and through never so many difficulties, yet he is fully able to carry them through and make them see, and say they have been gainers thereby” (514). Rowlandson believed that everything comes from God, and she sees everything happens as God’s plan. During her first week of captivity, she listened to the people who captured her and behaved well. She had only cold water and no food for 9 days. She was very scared about her situation but she was survival by relying on God. In her twenty’s removal, she got a lot of encouragement and strength from God and the bible. She can always find scriptures from the bible to give her power and comfort. In the Fourth Remove, she got the precious Scripture from God: “Jer.31.16. Thus saith the Lordm refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears, for thy work shall be rewarded, and they shall come again from the land of the Enemy” when she was so tired and hungry (p.493). It was God giving her support during her 20 removal; it was God made her survival. In Puritans’ worldview, people are blessed if they believe in God. They do what God pleases them to, and their happiness comes from God. Puritans value God than anything else. They believe that they are blessed because