The movie Dances with wolves is a movie that depicted the Indians in an unstereotypical way. Everybody in this time thought of the Indians as thieves, beggars, and savages. They took over other people’s land and killed the buffalo. I know that a lot of people have misunderstood, mistreated, or misjudged someone in their lifetime. All people are worthy of respect, you cannot just judge by first instinct or by what others say. Americans back then were small minded, revengeful, prejudiced, and swayed by rumor very easily.
Everyone in the world has to make a first impression on something new, sometimes it is a bad impression and they assume that you are always like that or that’s how you view everything. Whether you make a good impression or bad impression everyone is worthy of respect. You can’t just hate somebody just because how they act, and this is exactly what the Americans did. Many people have thought of someone in a certain way including myself, after you make those actions you look back and really think about it and how you had no right to do whatever you did. September 11th had a huge impact on the Middle Eastern people, I know that I had view on Arabs that were not right, just because a select few people did the wrong thing, doesn’t mean that everyone their culture is one of them. Another thing is gay marriages, I really do not think that they are right and gays are just stupid, but everyone has their right to do what they want and I think that is how it should be even though it’s not supported by many people. Stereotyping is the one of the worst traits that Americans possess. In the movie John Dunbar was almost the near opposite of the average person back then. He took the time to understand what these Indians were really like. It turns out that they were extremely friendly and very helpful. The average American would kill John Dunbar for being a traitor even though he was one of them. Nobody takes the time to take in what people have to say over a period of time, they jump to conclusions. If everyone in the world acted as John Dunbar did the world would be such a better place. People keep talking about the bad of someone more than the good and that is all that spreads throughout the country.
In the film Dances with Wolves, the settlers view the Indians as primitive and uncivilized creatures. Dunbar, played by Kevin Costner, needs a change of pace so he decides to go to the "furthest outpost." Upon arriving at his post, he gradually realizes that the Indians are just as scared of him as he is of them. Soon Dunbar identifies with their way of life and in the end has to choose to live either as a settler or as an Indian.
Native Americans on the reservation were aware that people think of them a certain way but then
People know about the conflict between the Indian's cultures and the settler's cultures during the westward expansion. Many people know the fierce battles and melees between the Indians and the settlers that were born from this cultural conflict. In spite of this, many people may not know about the systematic and deliberate means employed by the U.S. government to permanently rid their new land of the Indians who had lived their own lives peacefully for many years. There are many strong and chilling reasons and causes as to why the settlers started all of this perplexity in the first place. There was also a very strong and threatening impact on the Native Americans through the schooling that stained the past and futures of Native Americans not only with blood but also with emotion. It was all a slow and painful plan of the "white man" to hopefully get rid of the Indian culture, forever. The Native American schools were created in an attempt to destroy the Native American way of life, their culture, beliefs and tradi...
When the colonists came to America, they classified the Native Americans as complete brutal savages. But was that a correct assumption? The Native Americans lived a life that was a complete opposite from the way that the Europeans were accustomed to. The Native Americans believed that the land was shared by everyone and not one person could own it. The Native Americans also had a polytheistic religion which completely went against the beliefs of the colonists. The colonists viewed the Native Americans as savages and barbarians because their ways of living were different.
The American society came to the conclusion hundred of years ago that it was in the best interest of America to misrepresent Native Americans, both in the past and present. The American continents were said to be inhabited with animal-like savages that had no cultural value. Schools have taught that it was the European's duty to civilize the new lands. One of the primary tools that have been used in the education of children is the picture book. Picture books have provided the American institution with a means of teaching our children that the Native Americans were bestial and animalistic, thus enabling us to ignore or justify the atrocities that Europeans and Americans have inflicted on the native societies.
“Film is more than the instrument of a representation; it is also the object of representation. It is not a reflection or a refraction of the ‘real’; instead, it is like a photograph of the mirrored reflection of a painted image.” (Kilpatrick) Although films have found a place in society for about a century, the labels they possess, such as stereotypes which Natives American are recognized for, have their roots from many centuries ago (Kilpatrick). The Searchers, a movie directed by John Ford and starred by John Wayne, tells the story of a veteran of the American Civil War and how after his return home he would go after the maligned Indians who killed his family and kidnapped his younger niece. After struggling for five years to recover his niece back, who is now a young woman, she is rescued by his own hands. Likewise, Dances with Wolves is a Western film directed and starred by Kevin Costner. It is also situated during the American Civil War and tells the story of a soldier named John Dunbar that after a suicide attempt; he involuntarily leads Union troops to a triumph. Then, by his request he is sent to a remote outpost in the Indian frontier “before it’s gone”. There, the contact with the natives is eminent and thus it shows how through those contacts this soldier is transformed into another Indian that belongs with the Sioux to tribe and who is now called Dances With Wolves. While both John Ford and Kevin Costner emphasize a desire to apologize to the indigenous people, they use similar themes such as stereotypes, miscegenation, and the way characters are depicted; conversely, these two movies are different by the way the themes are developed within each film.
The Call of the Wild, by Jack London, is a classic piece of American literature. The novel follows the life of a dog named Buck as his world changes and in turn forces him to become an entirely new dog. Cruel circumstances require Buck to lose his carefree attitude and somewhat peaceful outlook on life. Love then enters his life and causes him to see life through new eyes. In the end, however, he must choose between the master he loves or the wildness he belongs in.
The stereotype of Native Americans has been concocted by long history. As any stereotype constructed by physical appearance, the early Europeans settlers were no different and utilized this method. Strangers to the New World, they realized the land was not uninhabited. The Native Americans were a strange people that didn't dress like them, didn't speak like them, and didn't believe like them. So they scribed what they observed. They observed a primitive people with an unorthodox religion and way of life. These observations made the transatlantic waves. Not knowingly, the early settlers had transmitted the earliest cases of stereotyped Native Americans to the masses. This perpetuated t...
... for their religious beliefs and cultural values. People’s religious beliefs and practices all need to be protected from harm and negative influence like a child needs care from his mother. The Pueblo Indians should be looked at as an example of how people should not be treated. This way, hopefully we won’t make the same mistake twice. We all have an obligation to know all the facts and the whole truth about something before we start to reject it. If the white people in the early 20th century had taken the time to understand the meaning of these dances they may not have been so quick to judge and may have stood back and reflected on their own ways of living.
The Native Americans were referred to as “savages” and the English in their words expressed their fear of them. One could also take the Native Americans’ nature as being shy because upon the English spotting a few of them near the water they quickly ran away (Bradford 59). This was probably because the Native Americans had never seen anyone other than themselves. They were shown to be intelligent people who not only farmed but also built houses (Bradford 60). However, the English also implied the Native Americans to be mean people because they stated that one of the reasons for building large fires was to “…defend them from any sudden assaults of the savages” (Bradford 61). Nevertheless, it was not long until the Native Americans did attack the English and in their minds, it was for no reason. The recurring theme was that the English were always cautious of the Native Americans because they feared they would attack (Bradford 62).
American society, like that of Germany, was tainted with racial bigotry and prejudice. The Japanese were thought of as especially treacherous people for the attack on Pearl Harbor. The treachery was obviously thought to reside in ...
The movie starts by showing the Indians as “bad” when Johnson finds a note of another mountain man who has “savagely” been killed by the Indians. This view changes as the movie points out tribes instead of Indians as just one group. Some of the tribes are shown dangerous and not to be messed with while others are friendly, still each tribe treats Johnson as “outsider.” Indians are not portrayed as greater than “...
Contrary to common belief, Native American culture is not savage nor is it cruel to its people or others. The culture is considerably unique to the usual American culture known to many today. When the white Americans came to the land, they believed that the Natives were of beastly behavior and senseless actions, which was the reason why the Natives repulsed the Puritans; in fact the whites were offended when told they had something in common with the Natives. Native Americans, however, are peaceful, accepting, hospitable, tremendously environmentally friendly and their way of life is inveterate with nature and their religious beliefs. Through reading The Iroquois creation story and Red Jacket: Reply to the Missionary
Cowboys and Indians is the popular game played by many children played as a game of heroes and villains. Natives are villainized in American pop culture due to the history being told by educational institutions across the nation. There are not many positive roles popular in the media about Native Americans. Many roles are even played by white people. The costume representation is not accurate either. The disrespect towards them is especially seem on Halloween, when people dress as Natives in cute and sexy ways that they think represent their culture. War paint, beads, feathers and headdresses are ceremonial accessories that represent their culture, it not a fun costume to wear. Only if they are being criticized and ridiculed, like they have been in the past. Racism has also been a huge problem when it comes to using creative names for sports teams, like the Redskins for example. Redskin is a derogatory and offensive term towards Native Americans and many white people do not see it as wrong due to the privilege they inherited throughout history. The disrespect towards them has grown and today it seems that if Natives were not getting ridiculed, they are for the most part ignored. The concerns that King describes in his book explains how the past has wired Americans to believing everything they have once learned. White people
We all are categorized and labeled in some form of a stereotype. The sad truth is, the same stereotypes we may place upon others are placed on us as well by someone else based on their perception of some group of people. Now think of the young black robber in the movie played by Ludacris. On one hand, he keeps complaining that society discriminates against him by viewing him as dangerous and white people avoid contact with him. On the other hand, he pulled out his pistol and robbed the innocent white couple of their car, confirming any preconceived notions the couple already held. The Persian shopkeeper feels inferior to others and is always furious. We are always complaining about the unjust way others treat us, but we rarely think of changing ourselves. The movie shows that no matter what cultural background you are from everyone draws a conclusion about the