The Portrayal of Native Americans - 781 Words

Throughout my life, I’ve seen Native Americans portrayed in many different ways. The thing I have noticed is that white-based media and history has portrayed Native Americans much differently than history told by Native Americans has. It seems to me that the white-based media makes Native Americans look like savage people while the whites were heroic, while the Native American media and history shines a better image on their people. Killing Custer by James Welch with Paul Stekler goes over events that happened in the time of the Wild West from the Native American standpoint. Even though it doesn’t go over the white settlers’ personal standpoints too often, it does talk about what the government at the time was doing to Native Americans, and it does talk some about the white people felt at the time. The book talks about settlers being afraid of running into Native Americans because they were led to believe they were dangerous and bloodthirsty. The book also talks about how some citizens, whether they be civilians, army personnel, or government officials, sympathized with how Native Americans were being treated, while other white people just wanted them assimilated or terminated completely. One phrase that is used a few times in Killing Custer is â€Å"Nits make lice†, which was said to make it seem okay when innocent women and children were killed in battles between the army and Native Americans, or when they died from the small pox outbreak brought on by whiteShow MoreRelated Portrayal of Native Americans in Film Essay4573 Words   |  19 Pageson the islands that he falsely believed were the Indies. The term Indian spread back to Europe, as did the term Indies, and to this day, Native Americans are known as Indians, and the Caribbean islands are referred to as the West Indies. The Indians populated a much greater area than Columbus could have imagined, covering the land of two Continents. The Native people of these lands, kn own already by a term in their languages that roughly meant the people, were now thrown into one large group calledRead More`` Bars Fight `` By Lucy Terry923 Words   |  4 PagesThroughout history, Native Americans in early America have been viewed as primitive and violent people. Artwork often depicts them engaging in barbaric behavior such as eating other humans and engaging in violent wars. However, this view of early Native Americans has been created by the works of people belonging to the â€Å"civilized world† of early America. Lucy Terry’s poem â€Å"Bars Fight† retells the story of when a group of Indians attacked two families that she knew. Terry’s work can be compared toRead MoreFilm Review : Avatar 1461 Words   |  6 Pageshumans; more spiritual and in touch with nature. There are clear parallels between the portrayal of the Na’vi and the portrayals of Native Americans in popular media. The parallels are so apparent that Avatar h as garnered a reputation as being Dances With Wolves or Pocahontas â€Å"in space.† Some people, who think it is offensive to real world cultures, have actually accused the movie’s romanticized portrayal of the Na’vi as being racist. Is this true? And if so are there anyways this story couldRead MoreFilm Analysis : Reel Injun1626 Words   |  7 Pagesportraying Native Americans as well as showing how it is distorting U.S. history. However, that is not the only concern that the movie brought out. The other concern was how Hollywood portrays Native Americans is negatively affecting Native American. Also, the film Reel Injun will be talking about how this view on Native American is changing as time pass by in our own time. In the movie, Native Americans are often portrayed as spiritual, noble, and free this ideal image of Native Americans capturedRead MoreMedia s Portrayal Of The Black Age Of Media Essay1393 Words   |  6 Pages(Gabrenya 3). The portrayal of the class system has always been underrepresented or over represented since the golden age of media. The question arises what kind of ideas it puts in the minds of viewers about their society? Media plays an important role in developing an image of people from other countries or communities because many people have no personal contact with people from other countries and rely mainly on media for information about them (Harris). Unfortunately, media’s portrayal of differentRead MoreAnalysis Of Dances With Wolves1093 Words   |  5 PagesMovies have greatly influenced public opinion on life on the Great Plains and the inhabitants who live off of these lands. In the past, the Great Plains was portrayed as a harsh, wild, and beautiful landscape, and Native Americans as either peaceful humans or savages. Dances with Wolves represents a shift in this mindset. It was one of the first movies to paint life on the Great Plains as complex. Nevertheless, the film still contains many of the familiar Hollywood Indian myths. Dances with WolvesRead MoreThe Chicago Blackhawks, Washington Redskins, Cleveland1379 Words   |  6 PagesChiefs, and Atlanta Braves are all professional sport teams in America that use Native American culture to represent them through the means of tribe names, logos, and mascots. These teams have received a lot of media attention around the debate on if the representation of Native Americans is offensive or not. Controversy surrounding Native American mascots first came into the public eye during the 1960s Native American Civil Rights movement, where the use of these mascots was criticized for beingRead MoreEssay about Racism in Family Guy Supports Stereotypes1138 Words   |  5 Pagesowned by Native Americans. Lacroix states that â€Å"Though visual exaggeration may be argued to be a feature of the genre, the tone of these satirization is plainly patronizing† (Lacroix). The Native Americans’ were portrayed in a nonsensical manner. Lacroix mentions there were multiple jokes made about the intelligence of the Native Americans as well as characters with absurd names such as â€Å"Running Bear† and â€Å"Watches You Pee† (The Son Also Draws). This may be called satire but the portrayal of the NativeRead MoreShould Sports Teams Be Named After An Ethnicity?915 Words   |  4 Pagescaricatures, the native-American in particular. Of the four major professional sports team franchises included in the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL that do possess ethnic monikers, only two are of Caucasoid based ethnicity, whereas the other 5 are direct references to Native American ethnicity or stereotypes Historically, Native Americans are the weakest minority economically and politically in the United States. Unlike African-Americans or Hispanic-Americans, the indigenous-American population has receivedRead MoreNative American Stereotype Representation1743 Words   |  7 PagesNative American Stereotype Representation Stereotyping may be historical, but the emotions it arouses are eminently present today. According to Jack G. Shaheen, â€Å"Stereotypes are especially confining images. They are standardized mental picture[s] . . . representing oversimplified opinion[s] . . . that [are] staggeringly tenacious in [their] hold over rational thinking,† (303). It is obvious today that the presence of the Native American Indians is historically significant. Attitudes of those in