The Roles of the Characters in “Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee”

The video “Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee,” tells the story of being pushed onto reservations in the Midwest and Black Hills negotiations. The main characters include Charles Eastman, Red Cloud, and Sitting Bull. These characters each play a significant role in capturing the emotional state of life among the governing agencies and tribal members.

Charles Eastman survived the Little Big Horn Valley Battle of June 1876. He was being raised by family and tribal members until his father of newly Christian beliefs came to take him onto a reservation to learn in their school system. Here he was chosen to receive a Christian name and further his education. He attended a couple of different colleges before graduating from Dartmouth and receiving a medical degree. He worked with many prominent people which lead him to be the medical examiner at the Pine Ridge Reservation.

Charles Eastman must have had a confusing upbringing. He was born into the natural ways of life within his tribe. Although he experienced family displacement he entrusted in his father who wanted him to learn the Christian ways. He was smart and excelled in school. This was very important to the shaping of his life path. His early adulthood was spent away from his people. When he returned it must have been very shocking for him to witness the wrong doings and depressive state of life for his tribe.

During his employment as a medical official the reality of reservation life could not be ignored. Although he must have wanted to help his people there were many difficulties of the time. They were far away from Western civilization and supply to medical equipment. The epidemics of small pox, measles, and influenza were attacking the people. He could not al...

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...n it was a reasonable thing for them to do. Yet Sitting Bull was a proud chief and did not want to live on a reservation. When Sitting Bull came to Standing Rock he took pride in “being the last chief to give up his rifle.” Although this may have comforted him, there probably was not much reassurance of his power on the reservation. He stayed to himself riverside and built a nice cabin home. He did not want to conform to the Western ways of Christianity and harvesting crops. He stayed true to the roots he knew as much as he could. Yet his beliefs in spiritual ways and participation in Ghost Dances had lead him to his death by Indian Police.

These three men play important roles in the resistance of settlers and army forces. They were all intelligent and lived for their people. They wanted a good life for the people who were left to live on the reservations.