ESSAYS -
LIST OF AVAILABLE ESSAYS ...
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“Sitting Bull and the Paradox of the Lakota Nationhood”
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A 4 page review of the book by Gary Clayton Anderson. The author details the contradictions which are inherent in the historical pronouncement of the Lakota people as a "nation". Anderson's thesis is that the final recognition of the Lakota as a nation was indeed a paradox. Not only had the U.S. government never historically recognized the Lakota as a true nation and would fail to give that recognition even after they themselves had pronounced the Lakota a nation, they withheld the designation until a time when the Lakota were least capable of acting as a nation. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPnaStB2.rtf

“Sun Chief”: A Review of Hopi Culture and Belief
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A 5 page discussion of some of the central premises presented in this autobiography edited by Leo Simmons. The early life of Hopi Indian Talayesva illustrates that of one who is caught between two cultures, his traditional culture and mainstream American culture. This imbalance is actually one which is addressed by the traditional Hopi view of balance, a view which equally encompasses the balance between the modern world and traditions and the balance between the more primitive elements of life. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: PPnaSunC.rtf

“The American Indians”: A Critique of the Web Site
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A 4 page overview of this web site and its features. The author concludes that this is more of a commercial site than a site designed solely to provide a lesson in American history. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPnaWebSiteEval.rtf

“The Apache wars”
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A twelve page paper which looks at the origins and progress of the wars between the Apache Indians and the Americans during the nineteenth century, with reference to the different strategies which were employed by both sides, the role played by Apache leaders such as Geronimo, the importance of Apache scouts to the American troops and the eventual outcome of the conflict in terms of the cultural development of the Indian nations. Bibliography lists 13 sources.
Filename: JLApache.rtf

“The Film ‘Pocahontas’ and Native Culture”
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A six page paper which looks at the Disney film ‘Pocahontas’ and the way in which it contributes to misconceptions and inaccuracies about Native American history, culture and religious beliefs, as well as misrepresenting the life of the woman on whom the film is based. Bibliography lists five sources.
Filename: JLpocah.doc

“The Great Taos Bank Robbery and Other Indian Country Affairs": A Review of the Collection of Short Stories by Tony Hillerman
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A 10 page overview of the book by Tony Hillerman. Contrasts Hillerman’s style of objective journalism which is found in this book with that of his who-done-it mysteries with which we most often associate him. Weaving his unique blend of humor and objective reporting, in “The Great Taos Bank Robbery and Other Indian Country Affairs” Hillerman presents both the present and the past in the lives and land of one of the most interesting regions of Native America. This paper concentrates on the historical detail Hillerman provides in “The Treaty of Guadeloupe Hidalgo”. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: PPhllrmn.wps

“The West”: An Intellectual Reaction to Burns and Ives Documentaries on the American West and the Native American Peoples who Inhabited that Region
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A 5 page discussion of the information presented in the PBS series by filmmaker Ken Burns and Director Stephen Ives. This series leaves an indelible impression of the historical and cultural changes which the West would undergo between the latter part of the nineteenth century and the first couple of decades in the twentieth century. Emphasizes the changes undergone by the Native American inhabitants of this area. No additional sources listed.
Filename: PPnaWest.wps

“Truth and Bright Water”: A Review of the Novel by Thomas King
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A 5 page overview of the novel by Thomas King. Outlines the novel’s theme and emphasizes that in reality it is characterized by a duality of theme. Suggests that the names of the towns themselves are suggestive of this duality as are the differences between the characters and even the differences between these characters innate Indianness and the commercial Indianness which they sometimes call into play.
Filename: PPbrghtW.wps

"A Spirited Resistance: The North American Indian Struggle for Unity, 1745-1815"
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A 5 page review of the Book by author Gregory Evans Dowd. The author of this paper emphasizes the point that while many Native American leaders had hope of effecting a final victory over the whites that had invaded their lands, the "militant nativist" message delivered by prophets like Neolin (mid-eighteenth Century Deleware) and Tenskwatwa (early nineteenth Century Shawnee, brother of Tecumseh) was rejected by many of the Native peoples. The Native people had suffered tremendously at the hands of the whites. That suffering was not easily forgotten. Even when they were given new hope by new leaders, many were reluctant to confront the whites in yet another battle. They had come to believe in their hearts that the white tide was unstoppable and that by trying to stop it they would only sacrifice more Native lives. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPnaResi.rtf

"Beyond the Convenant Chain, The Iroquois and Their Neighbors in Indian North America 1600-1800"
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A 4 page review of some of the major premises of this book. Compares the work to that of past and contemporary scholars and contends that this book is one of the few insights into the Iroquois people that is influenced more by fact than by the historical and personal factors confronting authors. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Filename: PPnaIroq.rtf