There are quite a few questions have about Native Americans. I do not have a thorough background in this content area and the little bit of information I have was acquired in high school. So, at this point my bit of information may be skewed. There are a lot of questions on my mind that have been coming up at infrequent times when I’m reading. Here are a few that I remember off the top of my head.
-How many Native American tribes exist in America today?
-Are Native Americans still allowed to hunt the animals and wear their furs?
-What percentage of Native Americans living on reservations are below poverty level?
-Are the Aztecs and Native Americans similar in cultures?
-What, if any, kind of religion was present during their time?
-What was the symbolism behind scalping an enemy?
-Why is Indian such a negative label?
-In the movie, The Last of the Mohicans, is that a real tribe or Hollywood fantasy?
-What tribes were really considered savages and which ones were peaceful?
-Are there still Native American chiefs living on the reservations?
-How does one become a chief?
-Is there really a possibility, in the future, to have a state devoted to entirely the Native American culture.
-Why do some tribes require a certain blood percentage to be considered a member of their tribe?
I know there are many more questions floating around in my head, but I will be updating this post whenever I have a fresh one.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Gaze & Surveillance
How are gaze and surveillance related to the “reading” of and reporting on American Indian literature and culture?
This reading, The Rhetoric of Empire by David Spurr, was an extremely dense reading for me to comprehend. So I am going to make the best judgments possible with only a little bit of understanding.
It seems like in the beginning, the people who gaze are not treated well and are slightly dehumanized by people of a higher standard. Also, it seems like the ‘blacks’ are constantly in surveillance are not receiving fair treatment, like they are invading everyone else’s lives. But most importantly there seem to be many different view points upon which the gaze rest, it comes in many unique ways and everyone is a new experience. There is a man that designed a prison in Joliet, Illinois and talked about a form of surveillance. The way it’s set up allows the person of power to use surveillance on anyone trapped inside and all prisoners inside Statesville are inadequate compared because they are always visible to the power. Being watched all the time is kind of like a futuristic ‘Big Brother’. When is it going to start and affect the whole nation? Look what’s it done towards the Native American culture. They are the rightful owners of America, but we keep pushing them to move onto smaller portions of land and furthermore onto reservations.
This reading, The Rhetoric of Empire by David Spurr, was an extremely dense reading for me to comprehend. So I am going to make the best judgments possible with only a little bit of understanding.
It seems like in the beginning, the people who gaze are not treated well and are slightly dehumanized by people of a higher standard. Also, it seems like the ‘blacks’ are constantly in surveillance are not receiving fair treatment, like they are invading everyone else’s lives. But most importantly there seem to be many different view points upon which the gaze rest, it comes in many unique ways and everyone is a new experience. There is a man that designed a prison in Joliet, Illinois and talked about a form of surveillance. The way it’s set up allows the person of power to use surveillance on anyone trapped inside and all prisoners inside Statesville are inadequate compared because they are always visible to the power. Being watched all the time is kind of like a futuristic ‘Big Brother’. When is it going to start and affect the whole nation? Look what’s it done towards the Native American culture. They are the rightful owners of America, but we keep pushing them to move onto smaller portions of land and furthermore onto reservations.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
The new 51st state.
As I was searching through the internet, looking for information on Native American tribes that inhabit the Arizona area, I came across a fairly recent news article. At first I didn’t think anything of it but the title really caught my attention. An Arizona man, Mark Charles, proposed the idea of a separate state being made into a state for Native Americans.
At first when I was reading it, I can completely understand why Charles would propose such an idea. It seems reasonable to think, ‘hey these people were here first, it’s not right taking their land from them and allowing them only a tiny portion to live off of.’ Charles was clearly making his point by bringing up current events as well as common historic problems the federal government and the Native Americans have battled through.
However, as much as I would like to see a separate state be born, I just don’t think the federal government will ever allow another state, from anywhere, be allowed to join the United States. Honestly, throughout the centuries we constantly kept taking land from the Native American people. It seems like the United States should give them some land to govern as a state, rather than a reservation.
A concern of mine, would be the amount of different tribes inhabiting the land. According to the article it would be made of 500 nationally known tribes, and the ranking would be between 25-35 in means of population. I think it’s great that there are still that many people in the United the States that are Native American. But what about the differences in ritual and culture. I would like to believe that in this era people can get along and learn to accept other cultures, because this world does not need another disagreement that leads to war. I’m no way implying that it’s definitely going to happen, but there is always a possibility.
The link to the news article:
A state for Native Americans?
At first when I was reading it, I can completely understand why Charles would propose such an idea. It seems reasonable to think, ‘hey these people were here first, it’s not right taking their land from them and allowing them only a tiny portion to live off of.’ Charles was clearly making his point by bringing up current events as well as common historic problems the federal government and the Native Americans have battled through.
However, as much as I would like to see a separate state be born, I just don’t think the federal government will ever allow another state, from anywhere, be allowed to join the United States. Honestly, throughout the centuries we constantly kept taking land from the Native American people. It seems like the United States should give them some land to govern as a state, rather than a reservation.
A concern of mine, would be the amount of different tribes inhabiting the land. According to the article it would be made of 500 nationally known tribes, and the ranking would be between 25-35 in means of population. I think it’s great that there are still that many people in the United the States that are Native American. But what about the differences in ritual and culture. I would like to believe that in this era people can get along and learn to accept other cultures, because this world does not need another disagreement that leads to war. I’m no way implying that it’s definitely going to happen, but there is always a possibility.
The link to the news article:
A state for Native Americans?
Friday, January 23, 2009
The ambiguity of power: The clown.
I have always pictured clowns in a very particular way: white make-up, bright red hair, a large round nose, and a very annoying sense of humor. As that is a very modern take on clowns, I never realized Native Americans had a somewhat similar character portrayed in their culture. These kinds of clowns would mock all rules of the societal norm purposefully making themselves an object of unacceptable social behavior. However, these clowns were never punished for their deviance rather their job is to constantly remind the people of social disarray that is taking place and there is absolutely no control. The most surprising aspect about these clowns is the lack of punishment they receive for their actions. Instead, they are viewed as moralists by acting out the bad behavior so the people will learn what is acceptable behavior.
Modern society would never view clowns as that today. Society doesn’t look to them as a way of inappropriate behavior more just a way to get in a good laugh and as a source of entertainment. They are hired as entertainers for birthdays, parades, carnivals, etc. They do not share the extreme behavior like the Native American version. I just think it’s remarkable seeing the idea of the clown evolving throughout different cultures and through the years.
Modern society would never view clowns as that today. Society doesn’t look to them as a way of inappropriate behavior more just a way to get in a good laugh and as a source of entertainment. They are hired as entertainers for birthdays, parades, carnivals, etc. They do not share the extreme behavior like the Native American version. I just think it’s remarkable seeing the idea of the clown evolving throughout different cultures and through the years.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)