The Apology To The Tribal Nation Poem Analysis

The Significance of Words Ever question why some individuals even bother with an apology? This is how Layli Long Soldier must have felt after seeing the contents of the apology to the Tribal Nation, written by President Obama. After reading the apology, one could see the lack of understanding and empathy the United States Government has for Native Americans. All the horrible crimes and tragedies are laid out as simple misunderstandings and mistakes by the United States; the apology makes light of the situation. Despite Obama’s apology on behalf of the United States, Layli Long Soldier uses her poem, “Whereas,” to illustrate instances of her life to connect her reaction to said apology, in turn showing the absurdity and shortcomings of the

This is not technically a part of the poem but it is important to note this fact when analyzing “Whereas”. The author first shows her feelings toward the line of the apology about “the arrival of Europeans in North America opened a new chapter in the history of the Native Peoples” by recounting the time her daughter hurt herself after tripping outside (Soldier). Her daughter “braved a new behavior,” by laughing nervously as if she could not feel the pain of her bleeding knee (Soldier). People reading this poem can relate to instances where one might attempt to put up a front to the world instead of showing their true feelings. Soldier then illustrates to her daughter that it is perfectly normal to let those feelings show but then realizes that her daughter’s reluctance to share is a “deep practice” Soldier had instilled in her daughter (Soldier). The author connects back to the line “opened a new chapter” by expressing her involuntary response of her body shaking (Soldier). The author shows her disdain for Obama referring to the coming of the Europeans to the Americas as a “new