M2 Academic Journal Blog


     For writing Module 2, besides the textbook, Atlas of Indian Nations by Anton Treuer, I also reviewed the archived article from PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. It is an American public broadcaster and television program distributor which was created by Hartford N. Gunn Jr.

     The site itself is a Nonprofit Organization (NPO). It is the distribution channel for public radio and television programs in the United States. As an educational medium, they are delivering educational messages to the public. My chosen article telling about the Nez Percé Chief, Chief Joseph is a good example.

     By reviewing the article “Chief Joseph Speaks Selected Statements and Speeches by the Nez Percé Chief”, I have understood that why Chief Joseph surrendered. He desired for the peace. He hoped that there would not be any wars between their tribe and the white man. He had no choice. His inner struggle in this speech and statement reflected the plight of the Nez Perce tribe at the time. People in the heart of extreme pain under the circumstances of confession, often can best reflect the true feelings of his heart. He wanted freedom, but he also understood that his race had to change.

     This article has well shown the true feelings in the heart of the leader of a nation. “Let me be a free man, free to travel, free to stop, free to work, free to trade where I choose, free to choose my own teachers, free to follow the religion of my fathers, free to talk, think and act for myself -- and I will obey every law or submit to the penalty” (PBS). It was the truest cry in his heart.

     After reading this article, the only feeling for me is respect. “To be, or not to be: that is the question” (Poets.org). Even Chief Joseph could no longer live on the ground which he fought, his words expressed the ideas of justice and civil rights till today.


References:

1. “Chief Joseph Speaks Selected Statements and Speeches by the Nez Percé Chief.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/resources/archives/six/jospeak.htm.

2. “Hamlet, Act III, Scene I [To Be, or Not to Be] by William Shakespeare - Poems | Academy of American Poets.” Poets.org, Academy of American Poets, poets.org/poem/hamlet-act-iii-scene-i-be-or-not-be.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

M2 Blog Assignment

            An available resource that was provided to us students in module two was The American Indian Cultural Center and Museum, in Oklahoma City. The museum is dedicated to educating people on the cultures of the Indian peoples.             Reviewing the website, a person will clearly see how in touch the Native Americans have been for thousands of years. The website provides information about the significance of earth, wind, fire and water.             The tour of the center promises to teach how the wind brings the spirit of the environment to the people. Wind is the sound and breathing of nature and helped develop language. Fire represents the life cycle of Indians. Tribes had their own “Fire Keepers,” this part of the tour represents how the Indians struggled and survived the different obstacles they have ...
Read more

M3 Academic Journal Blog

The source I reviewed for Module 3 is from an article on “History Today,” which title is “Native Americans and the Federal Government.” It was written by Andrew Boxer. In this article, he “traces the origins of a historical issue still as controversial and relevant today as in past centuries” (Boxer, 2009).              At the beginning of this article, it talked about the current situation of the Native Americans. And the author tried to convey the perspective controversy and relevance between the Native American and the federal government today. We all have learned that it the last centuries, the U.S. government had tried all means to expel the Indians out of their homeland and settle down mostly in the reservations. They enforced the Indian children to give up their language and culture and to be like the white man. Boxer talked about the suffering of the Native Americans, too. But he also mentioned that the federal In...
Read more

M1 Academic Journal Blog

     In the last two weeks, I've read many stories in Nabokov's Native American Testimony. I have tried to find some heroes in the history which the Native Indians had fought against the invaders. And I've found a good example.      Since the discovery of the land in North America by Whites, European countries have been very unfriendly to local indigenous tribes in North America because of colonial policies. They have been trying to conquer these tribes and plundering their resources. Even after the independence of the United States, the war between Americans and local indigenous people never really stopped. Only until the death of the last chief, the Indians’ struggle against Whites gradually subsided.      Sitting Bull was born in March 1831. He was a brave warrior who led the tribe in a series of conquests against the Crow Indians. While still a child, he had acquired great popularity. When he was 14, he became the shaman of his...
Read more