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Literature on culture and diversity
Literature on culture and diversity
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Tracey Lindberg’s novel Birdie is narratively constructed in a contorting and poetic manner yet illustrates the seriousness of violence experience by Indigenous females. The novel is about a young Cree woman Bernice Meetoos (Birdie) recalling her devasting past and visionary journey to places she has lived and the search for home and family. Lindberg captures Bernice’s internal therapeutic journey to recover from childhood traumas of incest, sexual abuse, and social dysfunctions. She also presents Bernice’s self-determination to achieve a standard of good health and well-being. The narrative presents Bernice for the most part lying in bed and reflecting on her dark life in the form of dreams.
Monture Angus, a law professor and member of the Mohawk Nation, shares in this peer reviewed article, [Thunder in My Soul: A Mohawk Woman Speaks] by Native American women, that the society is allowing misleading representation to take away from their culture, she expresses that we should “- Understand it, understand where the pain comes from and why. I have to struggle with that...without understanding, (it) does not mean anything, does not reflect reality, and does not reflect people's experiences,” although her view is bias, it’s a very valid point, that we should understand that what we seek out as ineffective, is truly damaging
Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese and Sufferance by Thomas King are two novels that tell stories about the Indigenous experience in Canada. Both books deal with similar themes that are developed through the use of key literary elements such as the concept of trauma and its lasting effects on individuals and communities, Identity, Cultural Heritage, Healing, Racism, and Discrimination, both novels approach these themes in different ways. Firstly in both Indian Horse and Sufferance one of the main topics is identity and the theme of struggling with fitting in society. Both books explore the notion of what it means to be Indigenous in a settler colonial society.
One thing Perdue could have done to have taken this book to the next level, is include more insight from specific Cherokee women. With their insights, it would have given more of a direct insight as to actual stories making the book more interesting. If she had included more examples of Cherokee women today and how they demonstrated strength this book could have been better. Also, Perdue’s analysis reveals the burden of her politics. It is evident that at times she uses communitarian and the female centric nature of Cherokee society to criticize modern American gender relations and society.
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.
Beth Brant’s journey through Writing as Witness is to reclaim power, particularly that which she perceives in relation to langauge and words. "I hope to convey the message that words are sacred," she says, establishing her perception of what the power words entails through emphasis on tribalography and reclaiming tribal culture and history. The power of language to shape our perceptions of other people is immense. Precise use of terms in regards to race and gender can have a significant impact on demystifying many misperceptions. Power of word also relates to identity, and when Brant speaks about her sexual identity and Mohawk heritage, she ultimately reclaims power, particularly the power of word is* it is understand from her perspective
This poem’s structure reveals resistance because it shows that the words of apology extended to the Indigenous people mean nothing to them, if not backed up by action. I think this tactic is effective because it lacks unnecessary aggression, but at the same time does not excuse the
Hilary Weaver argues in her piece of writing; that identifying indigenous identity is complex, complicated, and hard to grasp when internalized oppression and colonization has turned Native Americans to criticize one another. Throughout the text, Weaver focuses on three main points which she calls, the three facets. Self-identification, community identification, and external identification are all important factors that make up Native American identity. The author uses a story she calls, “The Big game” to support her ideologies and arguments about the issue of identity. After reading the article, it’s important to realize that Native American’s must decide their own history and not leave that open for non-natives to write about.
In Sedgwick’s novel the two most heroic characters were females with one of them being Magawisca. Having a Native American portrayed as a hero was rare, and having a Native woman as one of the heroes further emphasized that this novel as written from a feminist perspective. Hope and Magawisca were two strong willed young women, they did not passively wait to be rescued they instead opted to act for themselves, which contrast with male-authored frontier novels in which “women’s voices were silenced” (Ross). Sedgwick assigns Hope and Magawisca characteristics, like heroism and bravery, that were traditionally only assigned to male characters, with the combined force of Hope and Magawisca, Sedgwick provides a “devastating critique of women as inherently passive and weak” (Ross). With Magawisca being a hero in the story she was not portrayed as the stereotypical “noble savage” she is “firmly established as intelligent, virtuous, and credible” any violence from her tribe is merely the result of her people being displaced and their land being conquered (Ross).
Thirdly, discriminatory behaviour by surrounding communities and the effects it has on First Nation children. There are many voices in this world that appreciate being heard upon their opinions, but some individuals use their voices as weapons to bring down other people. In Richard Wagamese’s Indian Horse, the audience in a hockey game perceive a hockey team full of Indigenous peoples as a source of negative energy for the game in general, and that can be interpreted as racial discrimination. “As we skated onto the ice for our game against the North Bay Nuggets, the crowd booed us. When our line us was introduced, they knew exactly where to direct their energy” (Wagamese
Eventually karma caught up on them and there was no healer to cure the sick in the village. There is always consequences when something is done out of spite to someone in Spider Woman’s Web; there is no way of escaping the harm one had caused on another. Women were the rock to the indigenous people of the land in America, and the newcomers did not understand the rules that were already placed; the medicine men wanted to impose their own rules. Sometimes the whites were successful at getting what they want, but in stripping the indigenous people from their rights they also dehumanized themselves. Great Speeches by Native Americans by Bob Blaisdell is a collection of Native American speeches discussing the oppression Native Americans experienced under white men.
The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston addresses prevalent topics faced in America today. How should women act? Should women be treated differently from men? In her memoir, Kingston faces many obstacles with her Chinese-American identity such as finding her voice as a young woman. In “White Tigers,” Kingston tells her own version of a popular Chinese ballad, “Fa Mu Lan,” while incorporating her own reality back into the section.
In her essay, “Where I Came from is Like This,” the author Paula Gunn Allen effectively utilizes ethos, logos, and pathos to convince her audience, women studies and ethnic scholars, of her claim that the struggles of American Indian women have had with their identities. Gunn Allen uses all three modes of persuasion to describe the struggles of American Indian women. She uses ethos to strengthen her credibility, logos to logically explain the issue, and pathos to emotionally explain the struggles of American Indian women have had with their identities. With ethos she tells us where she is from and how she got her information, which makes her more trustworthy and believable.
Science journalist, Charles C. Mann, had successfully achieved his argumentative purpose about the “Coming of Age in the Dawnland.” Mann’s overall purpose of writing this argumentative was to show readers that there’s more to than just being called or being stereotyped as a savage- a cynical being. These beings are stereotyped into being called Indians, or Native Americans (as they are shorthand names), but they would rather be identified by their own tribe name. Charles Mann had talked about only one person in general but others as well without naming them. Mann had talked about an Indian named Tisquantum, but he, himself, does not want to be recognized as one; to be more recognized as the “first and foremost as a citizen of Patuxet,”(Mann 24).
Though, this piece could not be published as it is deemed controversial. But for Cheryl, she knows it by heart, and it outlines the problem both the Metis and Indian people are going through. On the other hand, April despises her Metis culture and heritage. “‘… so anything to do with the Indians, I despised’” (40). April dreams of living similarly to a white person.