| Papers [495-513] of 531 :: [Page 27 of 28] | | Go to page : <— 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 —> | |
|
|
Sioux Culture & Music, 2001.
Examines cultural & historical background, belief system, role of music in Native American cultures, attributes of music of the Sioux.
2,025 words (approx. 8.1 pages), 8 sources, $ 71.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
"Traditional Sioux of the last century ? or the centuries before ? would have found the entire idea of putting on their best clothes and going to a concert hall to listen ? as relatively passive observers ? to a musical performance extremely odd. For them, as for other native peoples of the Americas (and arguably other native peoples throughout the world before the onset of industrialization) music was something that was integrated into the fabric of ritual and everyday life. It was not something apart. Music and dancing were nearly always integrated into either ceremonial or celebrative activities of personal and communal life (Hassrick, 1964, p. 140). Such a degree of integration is hard for citizens of the almost-21st century to imagine."
| |
|
"American Holocaust" by David Stannard, 2001.
Analysis of development of genocidal policy toward Indians of the New World, before Columbus. Arrival of Columbus & conquest by Europeans.
1,125 words (approx. 4.5 pages), 1 source, $ 39.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
" In his book American Holocaust, David E. Stannard writes about the nature of life and society in the New World before the coming of Columbus, the Conquest that followed the arrival of Columbus, the attitude taken toward the Native Americans by Europeans after this, and the idea that what occurred should be classified as genocide. The period before the coming of Columbus is not completely peaceful, but it was a set way of life in which the Native Americans enjoyed their isolation from the rest of the world and attained a level of development as a result. After the arrival of Columbus, though, the people were exploited, suffered from diseases they had never seen before, died by the millions, and lost their land over a period of time until they were placed in the unfortunate position they remain in to this day. "
| |
|
Sherman Alexie's "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven", 2001.
Critiques the short story about a contempoirary American Indian & highlights the book's pessimistic tone.
2,250 words (approx. 9.0 pages), 5 sources, $ 79.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
"Sherman Alexie's short story "The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" takes a pessimistic perspective on the life of one American Indian character. From this story, it is likely that the author's overall outlook on the future of American Indians in the same situation is certainly far from optimistic, though there are some signs of hope, such as the narrator's year of sobriety. The straightforward, plain, prosaic style is expressive of the negative outlook on life which permeates the protagonist's character and his environment, as if the protagonist has no extra energy to try to express himself beyond his surface thoughts and feelings. There is little hope for any significant change for the better in this story, but only the sense that things will stay about the same, or sometimes a little better or a little worse, and all one can do is accept.."
| |
|
Cultures of Native Americans, 2001.
Analysis of North American Indian societies, 1775-1815. Historical response to Europeans, traditions & political skills. Effects of American Revolution; resistance to Federal gov't. policies; devastation of their cultures.
4,050 words (approx. 16.2 pages), 16 sources, $ 135.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
"This research paper discusses the cultures of Native American peoples as they existed during the creation of the American nation from 1775 to 1815. It focuses upon the traditional cultures of the Eastern Woodlands Indians, the Iroquois in the North, the Algonquian Shawnee in the Northwest Territory and the Muskhogean Creek Confederacy in the Deep South and Gulf region.
Over the centuries, a plethora of Indian tribes east of the Mississippi evolved and developed a wide diversity of cultural institutions and patterns of life, uniquely adapted and attuned to their natural environment and historical circumstances. All of them were significantly disrupted and altered by contact with European settlers. By the time of the American Revolution, most of the Algonquian tribes in New England and other Indians along..."
| |
|
Health Care Needs of Native Americans, 2001.
Cites prevelant conditions--diabetes, cancer, suicide. Recommends & discusses specific reforms including access, quality & funding of health care.
1,575 words (approx. 6.3 pages), 9 sources, $ 55.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
"n excellent description of the current health care status of Native Americans has been provided by Ray Began who, in 1998, was the President of the Association of American Indian Physicians. In this regard, it is noted by Began that in general this is a community where there are profound health care needs that are not being adequately addressed by the current health care system. As Began reports:
Native Americans receive the lowest health care dollars allocated by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Indian Health Service. The per capita amount spent on health care for Native Americans is only $1,132 compared to the $3,261 spent ..."
| |
|
"Land of the Spotted Eagle" by Luther Standing Bear, 2001.
Analysis of Lakota Sioux, relations with white government & subjugation of Lakota culture.
1,125 words (approx. 4.5 pages), 1 source, $ 39.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
"In the book Land of the Spotted Eagle, Luther Standing Bear offers an analysis of his people, the Lakota Sioux, their relations with the government of the whites, and a strong sense of what it means to be part of a population whose land has been systematically stolen, whose culture and rituals have been denigrated, and whose future is in doubt.
Luther Standing Bear was raised in the traditional Sioux manner. He was away from the Pine Ridge Sioux Reservation in South Dakota for sixteen years before returning in 1931, and soon after, he wrote this book. His absence gave him the point of view of both a tribal member and an outsider at one and the same time, for he could see where changes had been made and could compare the way his people lived on the reservation with the way people lived elsewhere. His outside experience coupled..."
| |
|
Battle of the Little Bighorn, 2001.
Discussion of key personalities & politics, Custer's tactics, response of Sioux & Cheyanne. Priases clarity of book by Mari Sandoz.
1,350 words (approx. 5.4 pages), 2 sources, $ 47.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
"The battle of the Little Bighorn has been retold so many times that any retelling would seem to suffer from preconceptions and comparisons. This has not been the case with The Battle of the Little Bighorn.
Mari Sandoz, the author of The Battle of the Little Bighorn was only known to me as the screen credit for Cheyenne Autumn; the story of three hundred starving Cheyenne men, women and children, forcibly resettled in the barren wastelands of Oklahoma, who set out in the Autumn of 1878 on a desperate 1500 mile trek back to their Yellowstone homeland. In this book she has managed to capture the essence of the major personalities and conflicts endemic to the times. She has ..."
| |
|
Louise Erdrich, 2001.
Influences on her literary work of her life & career incl. Native American life. Analysis of "Wedge of Shade."
1,575 words (approx. 6.3 pages), 5 sources, $ 55.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
From the Paper
"Synopsis
Louise Erdrich, like many of the characters in her novels and short stories, is part Native American, part something else ? in her case, her family is a mixture of a German-American father and a Chippewa mother. Erdrich's parents worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs as teachers on a nearby North Dakota reservation and she recalls that her father regularly recited memorized poetry ? Frost and Byron ? to her and her six siblings. Erdrich started her literary career as a poet, supporting herself by working at a Kentucky Fried Chicken and on road construction crews.
At 28, Erdrich published her first novel Love Medicine ? which had been rejected by numerous publishing houses ? when her husband, the author Michael Dorris, resubmitted it, posing as her literary agent."
| |
|
"Crota", 2002.
A study of the book, "Crota", by Owl Goingback.
775 words (approx. 3.1 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 27.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
This book report examines the themes of the book "Crota" by Owl Goingback. It discusses the basic Native American traditions found in the book and the contrast between good and evil. The paper also touches on the theme of mind control in the novel.
From the Paper
"Vision Quest, a common form of spiritual evolution amongst the Native Americans was also very interesting. It consisted of meditative experiences and illusions that would best not be disregarded. There was an overwhelming need to silence the mind so it could truly listen to what the surroundings had to say directly or indirectly. There are many cues that nature provides to the receptive audience. The other aspect which was fascinating was one of mind control. This facet of the book convinced me that we have to go beyond our five senses. After all science has revealed that we do not use more than 10% of our minds. Many of the important breakthroughs in ?Crota? were linked through tapping into ones full being through meditative practice."
| |
|
?House Made of Dawn? and ?Indian Killer?, 2002.
An analysis of two novels, ?House Made of Dawn? by N. Scott Momaday and ?Indian Killer? by Sherman Alexe, both of which bring to light the plight of the Red Indians.
1,214 words (approx. 4.9 pages), 3 sources, MLA, $ 41.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
This paper shows how the works of both Alexe?s and Momaday commonly highlight Red Indians, representing them as a generation of people neglected, looked down, oppressed and severely under represented in nearly all spheres of an average American life. It examines how the authors, through their characters, portray the lack of understanding present in the American society for the Red Indians and the anger prevalent amongst the Red Indians. Both novels have awakened the literary world on the existence of a culture that had always been there for possibly thousands of years, but only through an occasional perspective from an anthropologist and or a historian.
From the Paper
"The depiction of other characters, such as Francisco and Reverend Tosamah too is suggestive of the evident and prevailing diversity on and about the Indian people and their culture. The first is both a staunch believer of the Catholic faith, and a medicine man for the tribal, and the second is the modern age preacher living in Los Angeles preaching the Native Indians on the Word of God and Christianity. Yet, the most important character is Abel is given the assignment of eliminating the growing difference between the Indian reservations where he and his ancestors grew up, and the city, which has trapped him, but all in vain. (Pinkmonkey, 2002)"
| |
|
The PaleoIndians, 2002.
A study of the first inhabitants of North America who came at the end of the Ice Age by way of a land bridge that connects Siberia and Alaska.
1,030 words (approx. 4.1 pages), 4 sources, MLA, $ 36.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
The main focus of this paper is the establishment of the thesis that the first known inhabitants of America were the PaleoIndians of the Ice Age time period. This thesis is supported by studies and secondary sources that support this claim. In addition to the geological evidence found, the lifestyle, culture and tools of the PaleoIndians is discussed.
From the Paper
"The Clovis point is a piece of tool that was first found in Siberia. Several pieces of the same kind of tool was found in the U.S. states of New Mexico, Montana, and Colorado (Rose 1997). The tool was discovered after geologists studied the layering of soil, part of a study that might help lead to the discovery of an important artifact or preserved fossil resulting in evidence of the first inhabitants of America. The Clovis point was a crudely shaped hunting tool made of stone, often referred to as a ?spearpoint.? This tool became the key to the discovery of various information about the culture of the PaleoIndians."
| |
|
The Effects of European Epidemics on the Indians, 2002.
An analysis of the effects of European epidemics on the Native Americans during the early years of the U.S.
1,633 words (approx. 6.5 pages), 7 sources, MLA, $ 53.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
This paper looks at the effect on the Native Americans and on their lifestyles by the diseases bought over from Europe by the first settlers. It discusses how it was not war that wiped out the Native Americans, but diseases such as smallpox, measles, malaria, and influenza. Native Americans had no resistance to these diseases and entire tribes were soon decimated by fast-spreading epidemics. As a result, much of the diverse Native American culture has disappeared.
From the Paper
"It is estimated that some 400,000 Native Americans lived in America by 1600. With the arrival of English and Dutch people, this number was dramatically reduced as a result of new diseases, such as plague, smallpox, chickenpox, mumps, measles and influenza. (Bailey, 1969) Between 1616 and 1619, the Native American people were nearly wiped out as a result of a mysterious plague, most likely either bubonic or pneumonic, which was contracted from Europeans sailing along the coast of Maine. "
| |
|
Cruelty and Kindness in "Halfbreed", 2002.
A study of the themes kindness and cruelty in the autobiographical novel, "Halfbreed" by Maria Campbell.
927 words (approx. 3.7 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 32.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
The paper examines the novel, "Halfbreed" by Maria Campbell, an autobiography where Campbell describes the struggles of her life centered around her being a halfbreed, a half-Indian and half-white person, rejected by both the Indian and the white people. The paper shows that cruelty and kindness are important themes of Campbell?s story. Firstly, there is the human cruelty of discrimination, represented by the acts of the people. Secondly, it describes the cruelty of society, where society oppresses people. Finally, the paper discusses a belief in human kindness that allows Campbell to overcome the struggles, with the writing of the autobiography an act of reaching out to the people who have discriminated against her and offering them the opportunity to understand the cruelty of their ways and choose to change these ways.
From the Paper
"Campbell shows that it is the basis of society that is responsible for the treatment of the halfbreeds. The halfbreeds are homeless because the government took their land from them, forcing them to live in poverty. Their culture was never accepted, instead they were expected to fit into the Canadian culture. This separated the halfbreeds from the rest of society, forcing them to be seen as outcasts. Campbell expresses this process when she says recalls her grandmother?s words, ?My Cheechum used to tell me that when the government gives you something, they take all that you have in return - your pride, your dignity, all the things that make you a living soul.?"
| |
|
Native American Culture, 2002.
A review of the book, ?Myths That Hide The American Indian" by Oliver La Farge, and a study of the cultural contributions of Native American tribes to North America.
895 words (approx. 3.6 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 31.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
This paper examines the societal structures of the various Native American tribes as seen in the book, ?Myths That Hide The American Indian" by Oliver La Farge. It describes the tremendous contributions of numerous Native American tribes in art, poetry, governmental structure and customs. The paper explores the European settlers? impact on the Native American people.
From the Paper
"An aspect of the essay that I found very interesting was the societal structures of the various Tribes. The tribes of the Southeast Mississippi Valley region were among the most advanced tribes in North America; in particular the Natchez tribe which had an elaborate social system. The social system of this tribe was divided into two groups; the aristocracy referred to as Suns and the common people called Stinkers. Within this system the common people could wed whomever they wanted but the aristocracy could only marry outside of their social group and the offspring would become a part of the aristocracy. This social system, as elaborate as it was, did create a problem because it decreased greatly the number of Stinkers within the tribe. To combat this the Natchez tribe would capture, torture, and enslave foreigners and if they survived they would become Stinkers in doing this they were able to perpetuate this social system."
| |
|
Native Americans in the Media, 2002.
The paper examines how the media has played a significant role in reinforcing the stereotypes of Natives Americans.
1,625 words (approx. 6.5 pages), 9 sources, MLA, $ 52.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
The paper presents the opinions of several theorists analyzing how the media is controlled by a dominant race and how the media is used to portray that group's ideology. The paper details how the media's portrayal of Native Americans has changed over the decades. It shows how the shift in media representation of Native Americans is due to a shift in media ownership and pressure from minority groups to be included in a positive way.
From the Paper
"The portrayal of Native Americans has changed significantly since the turn of the century, with the most significant changes occurring in the 1980s. In the 1950s ?Indians? were portrayed as the aggressors who committed some unthinkable act, without reason or provocation, to some nice white folks who were just minding their own business. They were the bad guys and a hero was sent to avenge the act and bring about ?justice?. The 1960s and 1970s brought about the Native American as a victim."
| |
|
Pocahontas through the Ages, 2002.
A review of the book "Pocahontas: The Evolution of a Narrative" by Robert Tilton which discusses the evolving and ever-expanding narrative of the story of Pocahontas.
3,235 words (approx. 12.9 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 93.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
This paper analyzes Robert Tiltonis book "Pocahontas: The Evolution of a Narrative" which considers the eighteenth- and nineteenth-century re-interpretations and re-assessments of the early texts that document the life of the ?Indian Princess". He does not discuss the actual story of Pocahontas at all. It demonstrates how the story has played itself out, again and again, in the pages of history and literature, in the visual arts, and in political tracts and how the story has been manipulated and molded into narrative that is becoming to the American people.
From the Paper
"The central argument of Tilton?s book is that the narrative tradition surrounding Pocahontas has been continually recast in different time periods. It has changed and evolved according to the needs of writers and artists who sought to re-tell the story according to the prevailing values of their time. Tilton writes, ?[a] study of a tradition like that of Pocahontas reminds us that every new era interprets the cultural documents of the past in the service of prevailing agendas? (186)."
| |
|
"Love Medicine", 2002.
An analysis of the novel "Love Medicine" by Louise Erdrich.
1,640 words (approx. 6.6 pages), 0 sources, MLA, $ 53.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
The paper explores the problems in categorizing the novel, politics raised within it and the main characters. It studies both the internal and external conflicts in the novel and looks at the use of setting and imagery.
From the Paper
"?Love Medicine? by Louise Erdrich is a novel that defies categorization. It is part Gabriel Garcia Marquez fantasy-fiction, part Hemingway?s down-to-earth working man?s (and woman?s) fiction, part Normal Mailer?s political-fiction. Erdrich chases the story of two families ? the primarily the Kashpaws and the secondarily the Lamartines ? through decades and generations of interactions and experiences. The two families? lives intertwine and intersect at several points, and the lynchpin to all of the stories varies between Marie and her granddaughter Albertine. The stories take place primarily on and around Indian reservations in North Dakota, and the Native American themes are present throughout the work. Erdrich does not overtly politicize ?Love Medicine,? but her background thematic structures lean heavily on the mistreatment of our Native American population and the unfairness of the reservation and allotment systems. The novel switches narrators often, which lends each character a unique and powerful voice. Erdrich?s general structure is to deal with a character in one chapter, and then give that same character his or her own narrative voice in the next chapter. These perspective switches allow us to create our own view of a character before that character has a chance to narrate and either modify or strike down entirely our view. Erdrich uses this structure to give her characters several layers and forces the reader to identify with characters who would otherwise be distant and a bit daunting."
| |
|
Love Medicine: Family Values Among the Dispossessed, 2002.
An analysis of Louise Erdrich's tale of characters linked in confusing extended family relationships who seek meaningful connection through tribal kinship.
2,520 words (approx. 10.1 pages), 8 sources, MLA, $ 76.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
Louise Erdrich uses her disjointed multiple narrative style to represent the similarly fragmented lives of her Native American characters whose home lives and family values cannot be expected to be what mainstream America would consider "normal" because their native traditions are no longer intact. Everything that their ancestors once stood for has been destroyed. The original natives of this continent, are now outsiders, alienated from the value systems established by the newcomers in their own homeland.
From the Paper
"Louise Erdrich?s Love Medicine is ?a collection of interrelated short stories? (?Voices from the Gaps?) with different narrators, about a group of Native Americans who are connected in confusing extended family relationships. As critics point out, telling stories in this disjointed way is part of the Anishinabe oral tradition in which characters evolve in stories told episodically over time (Stokes). Love Medicine centers around four Anishinabe* families, and although the Morrissey?s, Lamartines, Kashpaws and Pillagers don?t always get along, the underlying connectedness of the separate individuals is vital to these stories. In Louise Erdrich?s world of dispossessed, alienated Native Americans, boundaries between families and kinship ties are often obscured and connections need to be discovered. For Erdrich?s characters, biological ties and nuclear families are less important than tribal kinship."
| |
|
History of the Marksville culture, 2002.
An examination of the findings of early American archaeologists.
2,665 words (approx. 10.7 pages), 5 sources, MLA, $ 80.95
»
Click here to show/hide summary
Abstract
This paper looks at the discoveries of archaeologists of the first civilization in the Louisiana area. It discusses the geography of the time, the history of investigation, influences from other cultures, ceremonial findings and material culture that have been discovered by archaeologists.
From the Paper
"It is thought that man first arrived in Louisiana around 10,000 B.C. The delta of the Mississippi River began to form around 5,000 B.C., and man did not arrive in present day Jefferson Parish until about 500 B.C. The pre-history of human habitation in the delta region can be divided into five major cultural periods: Tchefuncte, Marksville, Troyville, Coles Creek, and the Plaquemine Period. In the lower Mississippi valley, all cultural activity on a Hopewellian horizon is historically subsumed under the term ?Marksville?. Beginning somewhere around 100 B.C., the resident Tchefuncte cultural system began to spread around the lower Mississippi valley. The Marksville Period overlaps with the end of the Tchefuncte spanning from around 200 B.C. to around 100 A.D. The Marksville culture spread into Louisiana from the Ohio Valley bringing primitive agriculture. The cultural changes are best seen in ceramics, which closely represent certain Hopewellian pottery of the Illinois valley, and mortuary practices, such as burial mounds. These cultural changes are from which the Marksville culture came to light. The time frame of the culture is 100B.C. to A.D. 400. The Troyville period succeeded the Marksville period from about A.D. 500 to about A.D. 1100. The Troyville culture is somewhat indistinctly defined and represents a transition between the Marksville Period and the later Coles Creek and Plaquemine Periods."
|
|
|