Extinction of the Native American
The area of the world that is now known as the United States of America used to belong to various tribes of people which are now known as Native Americans as opposed to their old name, Indians, which was a misnomer based on the erroneous idea that explorers from Europe did not know that such a large land mass existed and that by crossing the Atlantic Ocean, they had made it to the country of India. When Europeans first arrived in this country, they were highly outnumbered by populations of Native Americans. The United States of America is a nation that was built on the ideas of life, liberty, pursuit of happiness, and freedom for all persons. Yet, that freedom has been won only through the genocide of hundreds of thousands of people. In the course of a few centuries, the Native American peoples have been decimated, relegated to a fraction of their original population because of the violence, greed, and cruelty of Europeans and then white Americans.
The Jamestown Colony:
Christopher Columbus arrived in the New World in the year 1492. While there, he encouraged the enslavement of the native persons who he encountered. Enslavement was followed by murder of those who would not be oppressed. Following his successful journey home and widespread reports of a new world with naive, easily manipulated persons, it was only logical that other countries and their leader would desire to take advantage of this unprecedented opportunity. By travelling to the New World, the countries could create colonies, could acquire resources which could then be utilized or sold, and could for a very small financial investment become an even wealthier empire. Among the nations who would create colonies in the Americas were Spain, France, and of course Great Britain.
The Jamestown Colony, named after King James I, was the first one established by the British government. Under the flag of the East India Trading Company, it was hoped that sending young men into the New World could yield a plethora of goods which could increase the wealth of Great Britain and substantially increase the nation's power internationally. Although they never found gold, which was what was initially supposed to be found plentifully in the New World, the lumber and rich soil which was found more than made up for this. The success of this colony led to the creation of many others, all of whom were concerned with bringing financial benefit to the home country and caring very little for what befell the native populations who they were disenfranchising.
One of the first persons to write about white treatment of Native Americans was an Englishman named John Smith. Smith, although far from unsympathetic to the plight of the Native Americans, was still not above the idea that the whites were superior and that they had every right to take lands that were originally belonging to the natives he encountered. Quite the opposite, Smith wrote a history in "A Description of New England" wherein he highlighted the financial benefits that this new land would provide for the English and encouraged fellow explorers to colonize. His primary concerns are about the white culture and how people who look like him can benefit. Given that his experiences with the Native Americans where violent, it is unsurprising that Smith takes this idea. In History of Jamestown (2004), historians remark that Smith was in constant fear of his life and was only saved by 11-year-old Pocahontas. It has been written that her father, Powhattan, disliked the white culture not for its occupation but for the lack of common courtesy the white people showed for the Natives (Colonial 2003). Of course, the founding of the Jamestown Colony, which the Native Americans hoped, if not believed, would be a single white settlement, became only the first of what would eventually become a nation controlled by white people.
The California Mission System:
The California mission system had many positives and negatives for the indigenous people of what would become the United States. The initial purpose of the missionaries was to convert the Native Americans to Christianity. The Spanish perceived the Native Americans as something beneath themselves, although they did accept them as human beings. Needing ways to expand their power into the newly-claimed territory, the Spanish government allowed military unites to enter into what would become California. At the same time, missionaries spread out through California creating a series of missions which would serve as the central location for the given community. The missions were part farm, part church,...
Although they reacted with sorrow, they also attempted to preserve their culture. For example, some even ground the bones of their ancestors and sewed them into their clothing (Watson 1999). A similar story of Native American's peaceful reactions that were exploited by force is the history of Chief Joseph. This early recruit to Christianity was the chief mediator of peace between whites and his tribe, the Nez Perce, but when
Black Elk utilizes his visions to create understanding of nearly all things he is later exposed to. The discussion in closing will further illuminate his utilization of vision, to ask for help for his people in a time of crisis. To discuss the vertical model of artistic communication it is difficult to narrow the filed to just one example, as Native American literature, and to a lesser degree film have
Keeping Native American Language Alive: How to Save Them and Why This is a paper that deals with preserving the Native American Language. There are eight references used for this paper. The Native American Language is rapidly disappearing and there are numerous people and groups, including the United States government, working to revive and preserve this important part of American culture. The language differs from tribe to tribe and it's interesting to
Civil War and Reconstruction Question 2: What does the Civil War show that failed in the United States in this period? The Civil War and its aftermath showed that the United States failed to create a cohesive national character and ethical identity. The nation was truly divided, symbolized by the fact that Abraham Lincoln received not a single Southern electoral vote, and less than half of the popular vote, but still
The introduction of various kinds of technology for the railroad, cattle ranching and mining of gold and silver, and ecological disturbance resulting from agrarianism were among the major factors in the near-extinction of the buffalo. Permanent railroad tracks, the depletion of trees for railroad ties and bridges and the decrease in wild animal population marked the lasting foreign presence in the Native West. Recent estimates revealed that there were
. . The most sustained on record" whilst the American Indian: The First Victim (1972) maintained that American civilization had originated in "theft and murder" and "efforts toward . . . genocide." In the Conquest of Paradise (1990), Sale condemned the British and American people for pursuing a genocidal program for more than four centuries (Lewy, 2004). It was not only masssacre; epidemics were introduced by the White people too, one
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now