Both the books The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson and Custer’s Fall by David Humphries Miller are books that show certain characters overconfidence and how it can sometimes lead to their demise either literally or in a social and reputational way. The characters George Custer, Cody Pritchard, and Jacob Pritchard are all fantastic signs of why this arrogant type of overconfidence can lead to many types of problems with themselves as person or as viewed by the community. Overconfidence can lead to many problems as a person, for example both Cody and Jacob Pritchard from The Cold Dish believe they can get away with doing just about anything in there little county of Absaroka in Wyoming. When both these boys and two others rape and assault a Cheyenne …show more content…
Indian girl by the name of Melissa they believe they can get away with without being convicted for their heinous crimes. Even though all four of them get caught, they all get very misdemeanor sentences which only adds to these boys overconfidence as they now believe that they have the court systems on their side. This is similar with what Custer has to deal with as he marches toward the Native American encampments along the The Little Bighorn River. “Custer was uncertain as to how many hostiles lay behind the ridge, and it seemed unlikely that a mere handful had the audacity to challenge him.” (Miller 127) This is a major sign at how Custer felt about how he felt about the Native Americans he was facing. Custer did not believe that any of the Native Americans had the audacity to face him and his great force. This would be the same for both Cody and Jacob Pritchard except on a far less massive scale. Instead they just believed that they could commit an extremely hanus crime and get away with it. Both books hurt show the way that reputations can be hurt from overconfidence as well.
While both Walt Longmire and Vonnie are sitting at the local bar they begin to talk about the mounted Antelope behind the bar.“Pop used to speak in biblical terms, but what he said was that the brutes of the field don’t feel pain like humans. That’s the price we pay for thinking.” (Johnson 23) She is saying that because they are animals they don't feel the normal guilt that humans do everyday. The boys that were found guilty might have felt invincible at the time but as time went on they began to figure out that because of the crime that they committed it began to tear their families apart and almost immediately destroyed their reputation.Custer had the same problem when he lost his battle to the Native Americans. But instead of everybody knowing about his failure as an American Army Colonel little was ever really spread about the fact that he lost to Native Americans. “Even today, most Americans are familiar with the fact that our army once went down to a devastating defeat at the hands of wild indians. Beyond that , little is actually know about Custers debacle by the average citizen.” (Henry VII) It not only damaged Custers reputation as an American Colonel because of the massive underestimation he made about the Native Americans but it would have damaged the reputation of the rest of the American Army so they described the Indians as “wild” and “savage” making it look as Custer's battalion was incredibly overmatched so it didn't damage their reputation as the greatest military power in the world. Now Cody and Jacobs reputation wasn't covered up what so ever as they were being judged by the community that knew them and where the crime had happened, but at the time of Custer’s debacle there was no one around at the time for his reputation to be as incredibly slashed because there was no community to judge him other than his fellow comrades he died
with. Finally, both these books show the deaths of these characters as an astonishment the rest even though they have described it throughout the book. Walt is surveying the death scene of both Cody and Jacob Pritchard. “I walked into the scene of their deaths and immediately wanted to leave, you hate to see death among people no matter who it is that is dead.” (Johnson 126) Even though Walt despised what these two kids had done to Melissa and the sentence they had received from the courts but at the same time he feels for the fact that these kids had died in cold blood from somebody that hadn't been found yet. Custer’s death had also been very astonishing to the rest of the battle “Just then at midstream. the unbelievable happened, Custer-- the great invincible soldier-chief, golden-haired hero of the effete East, self-swashbuckler of the Plains-- fell, a hostile bullet through his left breast.” (Miller 128) Obviously at the time Custer was seen as invincible which only added to his overconfidence. This death of Custer to Native Americans was a massive astonishment to the rest of the Cavalry because of the fact that Custer’s battle record was practically untarnished nobody believed that he would die at the hands of Indians. Walt’s situation was obviously on a much smaller scale but it still had the same aspects of Custer’s death from his overconfidence and the astonishment of all three of their deaths. In conclusion, both the books The Cold Dish and Custer’s Fall resemble multiple different ways of how overconfidence can lead to your death and the death of your reputation . It may come in multiple different ways but the similarities are all there.
Panzeri, Peter. 1995. Little Big Horn 1876: Custer's Last Stand. 8th Ed. New York, NY: Osprey Publishing.
On June 25, 1876, The Battle of Little Bighorn took place near the Black Hills in Montana. This was one of the most controversial battles of the 20th century and the line between good guys and bad guys was grey at best. Gen. George Armstrong Custer (reduced to LTC after the civil war) had 366 men of the 7thU.S. Cavalry under his command that day. Sitting Bull (A Medicine Man) led 2000 braves of the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes (Klos, 2013). At the conclusion of the battle, the stories of the Indians savagery were used to demonize their culture and there were no survivors from the 7thcavalry to tell what really happened.
On December 29, 1890, the army decided to take away all of the Sioux weapons because they weren’t sure if they could trust those indians. Some people think a deaf man did this, but one man shot his gun, while the tribe was surrendering. Studies think that he didn’t understand the Chiefs surrender. The army then opened fire at the Sioux. There was over 300 indians that died, and one of them was their chief named Bigfoot. This is an example of how we didn’t treat Native Americans fairly, because if it was a deaf man then we probably should of talked it out before we killed all those innocent
Today Custer’s last stand is one of the most famous events in American History. Two Thousand Sioux Native Americans slaughtered General George Custer’s army of 600 men armed with guns. Crazy Horse was a very important leader in the Great Sioux War of 1876.
Next, Horney explains how people often overlook their own impulses. The pressure from their conscience causes them to project these impulses onto their partners. Projection results in distrust of their partner's emotions toward them.
Although the work is 40 years old, “Custer Died for Your Sins” is still relevant and valuable in explaining the history and problems that Indians face in the United States. Deloria’s book reveals the White view of Indians as false compared to the reality of how Indians are in real life. The forceful intrusion of the U.S. Government and Christian missionaries have had the most oppressing and damaging affect on Indians. There is hope in Delorias words though. He believes that as more tribes become more politically active and capable, they will be able to become more economically independent for future generations. He feels much hope in the 1960’s generation of college age Indians returning to take ownership of their tribes problems and build a better future for their children.
Although the work is 40 years old, “Custer Died for Your Sins” is still relevant and valuable in explaining the history and problems that Indians face in the United States. Deloria book reveals the Whites view of Indians as false compared to the reality of how Indians are in real life. The forceful intrusion of the U.S. Government and Christian missionaries have had the most oppressing and damaging effect on Indians. There is hope in Delorias words though. He believes that as more tribes become more politically active and capable, they will be able to become more economically independent for future generations. He feels much hope in the 1960’s generation of college age Indians returning to take ownership of their tribes problems.
The cowboy hero, The Virginian, as portrayed in Owen Wister’s novel was the first of his kind and today is known as the stereotypical mythic cowboy figure which our view of the western frontier are based from. The Virginian was the first full length western novel apart from the short dime novels which marked the final stage in the evolution of the cowboy hero to a national icon. The Virginian was published in 1902 and at that time was wildly popular because of the settlement of the west. The story of the cowboy who had the skill and courage to take control of the untamed frontier enthralled people. The cowboy hero had a few distinguished qualities, he was a self-appointed vigilante, he had a very strict moral code, he had exceptional perception skills and he had the ability to adapt. Owen Wister’s The Virginian was the first to portray these qualities and really created a deeper cowboy character.
General Custer graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1861; ranking last in his class. He served in the Civil war where he was a fearless cavalry leader, and in 1865 he was awarded a temporary rank of Major General. Many people believed that he shouldn’t even have participated in the Civil War, let alone graduate. Though, many who served with him said they admired his bravery and success but many were jealous of him. His enemies often said that he was a “glory hunter.” He was a glory hunter and looked to make a name for himself. After the Civil War, Custer went on to fight the Indians in the Southwest, Dakota’s and Montana territories. The war against the Indians stretched from the 1820’s all the way until 1890. When settlers started to flood the western part of America, railroads followed. These railroads made it easier for people to come out west and also buffalo hunt. Americans were killing buffalo’s left and right. Soon enough, the bu...
One of the darkest times in American history was the conflict with the natives. A “war” fought with lies and brute force, the eviction and genocide of Native Americans still remains one of the most controversial topics when the subject of morality comes up. Perhaps one of the most egregious events to come of this atrocity was the Sand Creek Massacre. On the morning of November 29th, 1864, under the command of Colonel John Chivington, 700 members of the Colorado Volunteer Cavalry raped, looted, and killed the members of a Cheyenne tribe (Brown 86-94). Hearing the story of Sand Creek, one of the most horrific acts in American History, begs the question: Who were the savages?
The journey of exploration to the western territories brought the white man many great things, but they did face some opposition. The US government made plans to explore the Black Hills, after hearing of the gold it contained. This was not an easy task. The Sioux, with strong force, were not giving up their sacred land easily. The only way to gain the territory of the Black Hills was to wage war against the Sioux. The Battle of the Little Big Horn was one battle that the US will never forget. General George Custer led an army of men to take out the Sioux, one of the battalions was completely wiped out including Custer. The Sioux were very strong, but US had a lot more power and technology. Why did we get massacred? This question has been a mystery to many people throughout the years. Sergeant Windolph, of Benteen’s cavalry, and John F. Finerty, from General Crooks cavalry, bring us some personal accounts and memories of this tragedy.
Paine, L. (1996). The General Custer Story: new light on the drama of the Battle of the Little Big Horn. Thorndike, Maine: G.K.Hall & Co.
All in all, the treatment of the American Indian during the expansion westward was cruel and harsh. Thus, A Century of Dishonor conveys the truth about the frontier more so than the frontier thesis. Additionally, the common beliefs about the old west are founded in lies and deception. The despair that comes with knowing that people will continue to believe in these false ideas is epitomized by Terrell’s statement, “Perhaps nothing will ever penetrate the haze of puerile romance with which writers unfaithful to their profession and to themselves have surrounded the westerner who made a living in the saddle” (Terrell 182).
Most of the challenges facing Indians today are the legacies of those conflicts. Alexie illustrated the consequences of denigration of Native Americans in Flight. Zits again back in time to 1876, the battle of little bighorn in another body of a young Indian boy. He couldn’t believe he was standing right next to the seventh Calvary with George Armstrong Custer. He called Custer “Crazy egomaniac who thinks he’s going to be the president of the United States. Custer is one of the top two or three dumb asses in American history” (Alexie 69). Lieutenant Custer took his army, ignoring his superior officer’s order and attached one of the Indians camps. Cluster underestimated the counter attack of about a thousand Sioux and Cheyenne warriors to his small Calvary. Zits moved up the hills where Cluster and his solders dying. He was surprised when he saw a warrior woman. Zits said: “I never knew Indian women could be a warrior, too” (72). He continues toward the hills and saw the bodies of Cluster soldiers. He states: “Indians were protecting themselves from the soldiers. Cluster had ridden into camp to kill men, women, and children. He has to be stopped” (73). Zits overwhelmed with all the Indian men, women, and children are desecrating the bodies of dead white soldiers. He stands and watch in shock. He turns around and
When people commit unreasonable actions, they shall suffer. Arrogance often leads to one’s downfall. No sense in taking chances if one does not have to, yet these two individuals decide to take the risk. Death from the cold, these two arrogant men had to suffer through. One on land, clear-cutting trees in frigid temperatures, while the other, hunts ducks with his family, on a sinking hump in the blizzarding seas. In Jack London’s “To Build A Fire” and Lawrence Sargent Hall’s “The Ledge” both protagonists demonstrate similarities in their interactions with nature and themselves, but differ the most in their interactions among other characters.