My anthology is about Native American Protest literature. The Native American people have suffered longer than any other group of people on this continent. Their stories are sad. White people have changed the culture of the entire race of Native Americans. The texts that I have chosen will go into depth of this great atrocity. The focus here is violence against people that was unwarranted. Many of the people that suffered were women and children. In the White man's attempt to convert the Native Americans, the Native Americans learned to read and write and used it against the White man in forms of journals, poems, and films.
There are many different kinds of works that I have chosen for this project. The first I will discuss is from the American Protest Literature textbook. This passage is called "An Indian’s Looking-Glass for the White Man" by William Apess. William Apess was a Native American writer who adopted the Christian faith. Apess' feelings about the protest comes from a religious standpoint. The Bible is quoted several times throughout the passage. His argument appears to be that of all nations coming together as one and uniting. He judges the white man, saying, "Is it not the case that everybody that is not white is treated with contempt and counted as barbarians?" (52). He also asks, "Can you deny that you are not robbing the Indians daily, and many other?" His views help see two sides of the fight: The side of wanted to collaborate as one, and the side of taking offense and calling the White man out on his wrong doing.
The next work I will discuss is "From From the Deep Woods to Civilization" by Charles Eastman. Charles Eastman was a man of both white and Native American descent that related to both cultures. He tries to ensure that there is no cultural line or preference while he is using several different voices for the protest writing. Similarly to William Apess, Charles Eastman looks for progress to be equal with the white man. He states, “Why do we find so much evil and wickedness practiced by the nations composed of professedly, ‘Christian’ individuals?" (59). He uses Christianity as a prop against the white man. This is a good example of politics of appropriation.
I have included many poems to my collection of works. The first is a poem called "Ration Day" by Quinton Jack-Maldonado. Quinton used his Indian name from the Lakota tribe to sign off: Cokata Aupi. This poem is about keeping the pride within the Lakota tribe as the white man treats them as if they are animals for cataloging. The vision here also means to never give up by saying, "But someday our children will carry on" (15).
The next story I have included is by Tatanku Yotanka called "This Land Belongs To Us." Tatanku Yotanka is also known as Sitting Bull. He was a spiritual leader of the Lakota tribe and this passage was written by Sitting Bull to a journalist in 1882. The main argument in the passage is that the white man took the one thing that is the root of Native Americans and that is there freedom. He weighs the differences of priority between the Indian people and the white man.
The next work is another poem. Danielle Dull Knife wrote "The Fight." Her main focus in her poem is about the Battle of the Little Bighorn. The violence towards the elderly, women, and children and the humiliation the entire people endured. The line, "We fight back," (17) prevents her people from victimization.
The documentary, "The Spirit of Crazy Horse," is a film about the white man coming in, taking over, and their primary motive in doing so was for gold and now it’s about the vacation site of Mount Rushmore that they capitalize on a great deal annually. The racism the Native American people endure to this day is described and is one of the focus' in the film.
The take away from this anthology is to not pity the Native Americans. They have suffered a great deal at the hands of the White men, but they are fighters. They fight back to the point of death to claim their rights. They fight to avenge the deaths of the women and children that the White men have mercilessly killed. They fight using the White man's words and religion against him. They fight.
There are many different kinds of works that I have chosen for this project. The first I will discuss is from the American Protest Literature textbook. This passage is called "An Indian’s Looking-Glass for the White Man" by William Apess. William Apess was a Native American writer who adopted the Christian faith. Apess' feelings about the protest comes from a religious standpoint. The Bible is quoted several times throughout the passage. His argument appears to be that of all nations coming together as one and uniting. He judges the white man, saying, "Is it not the case that everybody that is not white is treated with contempt and counted as barbarians?" (52). He also asks, "Can you deny that you are not robbing the Indians daily, and many other?" His views help see two sides of the fight: The side of wanted to collaborate as one, and the side of taking offense and calling the White man out on his wrong doing.
The next work I will discuss is "From From the Deep Woods to Civilization" by Charles Eastman. Charles Eastman was a man of both white and Native American descent that related to both cultures. He tries to ensure that there is no cultural line or preference while he is using several different voices for the protest writing. Similarly to William Apess, Charles Eastman looks for progress to be equal with the white man. He states, “Why do we find so much evil and wickedness practiced by the nations composed of professedly, ‘Christian’ individuals?" (59). He uses Christianity as a prop against the white man. This is a good example of politics of appropriation.
I have included many poems to my collection of works. The first is a poem called "Ration Day" by Quinton Jack-Maldonado. Quinton used his Indian name from the Lakota tribe to sign off: Cokata Aupi. This poem is about keeping the pride within the Lakota tribe as the white man treats them as if they are animals for cataloging. The vision here also means to never give up by saying, "But someday our children will carry on" (15).
The next story I have included is by Tatanku Yotanka called "This Land Belongs To Us." Tatanku Yotanka is also known as Sitting Bull. He was a spiritual leader of the Lakota tribe and this passage was written by Sitting Bull to a journalist in 1882. The main argument in the passage is that the white man took the one thing that is the root of Native Americans and that is there freedom. He weighs the differences of priority between the Indian people and the white man.
The next work is another poem. Danielle Dull Knife wrote "The Fight." Her main focus in her poem is about the Battle of the Little Bighorn. The violence towards the elderly, women, and children and the humiliation the entire people endured. The line, "We fight back," (17) prevents her people from victimization.
The documentary, "The Spirit of Crazy Horse," is a film about the white man coming in, taking over, and their primary motive in doing so was for gold and now it’s about the vacation site of Mount Rushmore that they capitalize on a great deal annually. The racism the Native American people endure to this day is described and is one of the focus' in the film.
The take away from this anthology is to not pity the Native Americans. They have suffered a great deal at the hands of the White men, but they are fighters. They fight back to the point of death to claim their rights. They fight to avenge the deaths of the women and children that the White men have mercilessly killed. They fight using the White man's words and religion against him. They fight.