Writing Assignment #4 Book Review: Susan Magoffin, Down the Santa Fe Trail and into Mexico Susan Magoffin’s diary is a primary document that accounts her experiences traveling along the on the Santa Fe Trail (the Trail). Magoffin, being the first female to travel this trading route, was able to give a true insight to readers of how the conditions of that trail were. Her diary is regarded as the first substantial account of life on the Trail, however is criticized that Magoffin’s white privilege is what made her experience as it was. The critics argue, that the experience of traveling along the Santa Fe Trail as a non-Euro-American, would differ drastically then that of Susan Magoffin. I agree that being an upper-class, white woman, Magoffin …show more content…
Magoffin was like any young adult; she was very curious and quite observant of her surroundings. She was highly sociable and enjoyed meeting new people she met along the Trail. Even though she was the first white woman to make this type of journey, she was surrounded by very knowledgeable people: her husband and his brother James; both men were familiar with the Trail from their trading work. Her brother-in-law gave her an excellent example of how to interact with the Mexicans. He intermarried with a native Mexican woman named Dona Maria. This intermarrying came with a mix of culture, and Magoffin benefited most from being able to be immersed in Americans who respected the Mexican culture, and who also adopted the Spanish language, thoughts, dress, and diet. In this unique, multicultural environment she was able to confidently assume that Americans had a great capacity to be open-minded and, at times, ethnocentric. Places like Ben’s Fort, gave solace to these tolerant types of people and those who embraced other cultures, because it was so far removed from the eyes of the judgmental East. During the times her husband worked, Magoffin was free to be able to account all the experiences and culture she encountered by diligently writing in her diary every
Rykhus 3 The Moccasin Trail I read the book ” The Moccasin Trail”, this book is mostly about a man named Jim Heath. Jim is a man who shortly after leaving his family behind to go be himself was severely attacked by a grizzly bear. Shortly after the attack a group of Crow Indians found Jim who was half alive and took him to their Tribe and took care of him until he was better. Ever since Jim got better he joined the Crow Indians tribe and become one himself. One day, after six years of living with the Crow Indians Jim received a letter from his sister saying that they( as in his two younger brothers, sister, and little nephew) were backing up all their stuff and moving out west to Oregon territory in search for
Caleb’s Crossing, by Geraldine Brooks, explores the life of Bethia Mayfield and how she grew up in a New England settlement where she befriended the Wampanoag Indian Caleb who later comes to an english University. The American Pageant, by David M. Kennedy and Lizabeth Cohen, gives detailed information on the history and interactions between the New World settlers and the Natives that lived there for centuries. In Caleb’s Crossing the Indians and English settlers form close ties with one another even during major conflict, but in The American Pageant as soon as conflict starts the Indians and English forsake each other and a horrific war ensues. Caleb’s Crossing also gives a more in depth view of the personal relationship between Indians and
Dear Mr. President, Civic and political participation of the people in this nation is important in order to keep a functioning government and society. If the people of this nation ignores their civic responsibilities and don’t help make important decisions, then just a couple individuals are choosing who merits government positions. It 's our obligation as citizens to ensure our rights and take an interest politically. Lastly, civic and political participation is important because it allows people to be herd, to fight for justice and equality. What issues or events motivated the person to action?
In Eudora Welty's short story "A Worn Path," an elderly black woman named Phoenix Jackson treks through the hilly backcountry to receive medication for her ill grandson at the clinic in town. Despite facing incapacitating conflicts, Jackson is unrelenting and perseveres the arduous journey for her grandson’s sake, as she has many times before. Jackson's fiercely devoted and determined character is exposed as she faces the struggles of debilitating poverty, advanced age, and the rugged physical environment. The severity of Phoenix Jackson's jarring poverty is blatantly evident. She has to walk to town instead of using a car.
“The Oregon Trail,” written by Francis Parkman is a description of the experiences traveling into the unknown depths of the American west in 1846. The story is told from the first person point of view of Parkman, a scholar from Boston who embarks on the great expedition of traveling into the west in hopes of studying the lives of the Native Americans. His journey is also one of the first detailed descriptions of the beauty and the bounty of a largely uninhabited North American territory. But one of the most critical elements of the story was Parkman’s encounters and recruitment of members to his band of travelers who ultimately play a major role in the success of the western journey.
The Significance of Harriet Tubman and Harriet Beecher Stowe’s involvement in the Underground Railroad (as part of the Abolitionist Movement, 1850-1860) The Underground Railroad is not what it may appear in its most literal sense; it is in fact a symbolical term for the two hundred year long struggle to break free from slavery in the U.S. It encompasses every slave who tried to escape and every free person who helped them to do so. The origins of the railroad are hidden in obscurity yet eventually it expanded into one of the earliest Civil Rights movements in the US.
After years of waiting and preparing we started on the journey to the west. We made our way to Independence, Missouri to go on the Oregon Trail which was laid by traders and trapers. While there I became familiar with George Wilson who was also a working family man. A lot of families left together making the trail busy and causing jams..
In Reyna Grande’s compelling memoir, The Distance Between Us, she vividly recounts her life and journey from Mexico to the ‘El Otro Lado,’ the United States. Grande grew up in Iguala, Guerroro, a small town in the heart of Mexico. She and her family were brought up in extreme poverty and thus, her parents left for the United States in order to support them. Grande and her siblings were forced to live with their stern, disapproving grandmother and often faced difficulties because of their abusive and impoverished environment. Abandoned by both parent, the three siblings endure various hardships with the hope of a window of opportunity opening for their family.
At first Reed easily notices the small cultural differences such as the lack of cutlery at the dinner table (48) and also the customs of marriage, which usually signifies wealth and is “no more binding then the most casual attachment” (53). But later he begins to see that the American idea of Mexicans has been very off base. This first started when his misconceptions were debunked by the hospitable behavior of the people he encountered. Reed gives context of the American perception of Mexicans for example when he says, “I want to mention one fact [about Mexicans]” and making it a matter of importance. He continues, “Americans had insisted that the Mexican was fundamentally dishonest” (65) and then contrasts this assumption by describing the wonderful hospitality that nearly all Mexicans showed him during his travels.
Literature is often credited with the ability to enhance one’s understanding of history by providing a view of a former conflict. In doing so, the reader is able to gain both an emotional and logistical understanding of a historically significant event. Additionally, literature provides context that can help the reader develop a deeper understanding of the political climate of a time period. Within the text of The Underground Railroad, by Colson Whitehead’s, the use of literary elements such as imagery, metaphor, and paradox amplifies the reader’s understanding of early 19th century slavery and its role in the South of the United States of America. Throughout the novel, Whitehead utilizes a girl named Cora to navigate the political and personal consequences of escaping slavery, the Underground Railroad, and her transition
Throughout history, there have been many literary studies that focused on the culture and traditions of Native Americans. Native writers have worked painstakingly on tribal histories, and their works have made us realize that we have not learned the full story of the Native American tribes. Deborah Miranda has written a collective tribal memoir, “Bad Indians”, drawing on ancestral memory that revealed aspects of an indigenous worldview and contributed to update our understanding of the mission system, settler colonialism and histories of American Indians about how they underwent cruel violence and exploitation. Her memoir successfully addressed past grievances of colonialism and also recognized and honored indigenous knowledge and identity.
“The Way to Rainy Mountain” is organized very well, it includes three narrative voices. Throughout this novel the first narrative voice is about the Kiowa legends. Then Momaday has a paragraph of contexts that relates to the legend. The author gives the reader a bit of his life by relating a family experience he had. Because some of the Kiowa legends and history go with Momadays own family history, then this three voice narration allows the author to have great detail about the Kiowa’s way of life in every way.
As I ponder over my life, each memory seems identical to the other, and I find myself drifting through a reality of similar events that generate the same memories and emotions. Looking back further into my childhood includes memories of my homeland. I remember entering a new world at the age of five, where all of my later memories would be formed. This was when my family moved to the United States from Peru, my native country in the South. The complete change in culture and values truly impacted me when I first moved to Florida, and I reflect over the significant effect it has had on my character during the last thirteen years of my life.
When it comes to determining the identity of an individual, there are a few simple things that typically influence that assumption. The way one may speak or where they’re from, the types of things they like to do or hear or eat. While grander choices and decisions play into this identity, it is truly who one chooses to be on an average day that forms this mold. Gertrude Bonnin’s memoir The School Days of an Indian Girl focuses on her changing sense of self after being placed in a boarding school.
Two good examples of brave women that had accomplished great things during the time they had lived would be Mary Kingsley and Fanny Bullock Workman. Throughout time, people, and the way they think, have changed for the better, making women explorers more appreciated and historical discoveries in general more worthy of remembering. For the time of the 1800s it wasn’t very common for women to become very involved with “a man’s job”, but Fanny Bullock Workman was determined to take on the challenge. The early life of Fanny Bullock was filled