The Indian New World James Merrell Analysis

History in The Making After reading chapter 4 of Beyond 1492 by James Axtell, one can infer that Axtell’s central argument is that the Natives were “virtually absent a century ago whereas today they are at the center of attention” (Axtell 97). At fine point, what Axtell is saying at the time that he wrote this book, is that over a century ago (1892) the Native Americans were practically nonexistent in the history of Columbus and his discovery of America. Compared to today (1992) where Indians are now being “rediscovered” thanks in part to a series of movements arising in the late 1960s. (Axtell 97). The Natives were “allegedly inarticulate,” unable to express themselves clearly, and supposing left little traces in written records.

Native Americans has taken a real toll because of certain obstacles they must deal with to keep their culture alive. In the book, And Still the Turtle Watched by Shelia Macgill-Callahan shines light on the topic of change and power that has been taken the Native culture away. It stars a turtle that an old Indian carved in a rock who watches the Native land change and their culture dwindle of the power of white people. In both books, And Still the Turtle Watched and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, shows the struggles that Native Americans have to face with change, as well as my experiences at the Powwow. Junior expresses the noticeable change when he decides to attend a new school in the white community.

The Native Americans suffers hardship for being seen as a minority in the European-American society. Being forced into labor and acquiring diseases from the Europeans was only a few of the calamities they endured throughout the years. The indigenous people’s culture and religion diminishes as the Europeans settles in around them. The agony of seeing their own culture and religion yield to Europeans influences. The Europeans influences the indigenous people as they attain their lands and due to that, Native Americans has to adapt to their surroundings in order to survive.

There were harsh conflicts between white explorers and Native Americans from the earliest starting point of European colonization of the New world, such viciousness expanded in the mid-nineteenth century as European pioneers moved ever advance west over the American mainland. Most white Americans accepted there was horrible quality of life in peace and agreement with Native Americans, the government made the reservation framework

Throughout the book we are given an interesting look into the role that the Native Americans played in the environment. Before the colonist arrived, the Native Americans lived a life of traveling from place to place depending on the season. They had a system of land ownership that was fluid and varied depending on the environment and on their source of food for that season. This was a stark contrast from the colonization strategies of the new settlers that we have seen. As the colonists continued their development of the environment the traditions that the Native Americans lived by began to deteriorate.

Before Europeans even knew of the Americas there were Indians. The Indians had diverse cultures and conflicts with each other. There were hundreds of different groups of Indians. Most hated each other and killed each other. Some sought to get beyond murder and cannibalism.

Political, social, and economical structures were everywhere (Olson & Beal p.194). Being forced from their lands and coerced onto reservations where the Native Americans were under the constant control of whites had to play a huge role in the loss of their cultural identity. They almost had to accept the lesser roles in order to survive. However, in doing so they lost their independence, as well as their sense of personal

The thousands of Indians in a month’s, went to hundreds in a weeks, and too few in a days. The federal government forced them to leave their homelands and walk thousands of miles to a specially designated “Indian territory” across the Mississippi River. Some of the natives were crying that they had to leave their homeland, that they had many generations and traditions created. They made the journey to Indian territory on foot some, bound in chains and marched double file without any food, supplies or other help from the government. The natives did not have warm clothes to pass true the cold weather but the settlers were well prepared for the snowy mountains.

During the late 19th and earlier 20th centuries, many of the Native Americans suddenly had to start changing their way of life in order to live amongst the Anglo-Americans. They were given ultimatums in which if they did not comply with the newly imposed organizations of political, economic, legal, and social institutions, Native Americans had to suffer the consequences. For several centuries, many tribes have passed and those who survived were the ones who did the “tragic, but necessary” actions abide by these organizations and assimilated their way into survival. The Allotment Period was meant to terminate all Native Americans; however, it proved to not only the Anglo-Americans that Native Americans are in fact capable of assimilation, but

Native Americans flourished in North America, but over time white settlers came and started invading their territory. Native Americans were constantly being thrown and pushed off their land. Sorrowfully this continued as the Americans looked for new opportunities and land in the West. When the whites came to the west, it changed the Native American’s lives forever. The Native Americans had to adapt to the whites, which was difficult for them.

The author, Seybert provide an article informing the reader about Native American slaves’ and the series of events that occurred after the arrival of the Europeans. Before the Europeans arrived, some of the Native tribal groups would capture the Indian slaves and use them for small-scale labor and ritual sacrifice. Indian slaves were treated as if they were part of the Native American tribe. For example, The Creek treated both tribal members and slave children as if they were full members (Seybert, 1). Most importantly the Native Americans did not buy and sell the Indian captives, and if they did it was usually for peace gesture or an exchange of a member.

The Indians decreased in size drastically which later lead the Americans to have to find there own way of life, rather than following in the Indians guided footsteps. The Indians had learned what would work and what would not but life for the Americans’ consisted of them finding out for

From the initial settlements of the continent, disease brought over from Europe had severely weakened or killed off many different Native American tribes. Because of this, it is hard to find an accurate recount of native life before the arrival of Europeans making it hard to understand their societies before contact. Disease was not the only major effect on the lives of Native Americans. American capitalistic ideals began to intrude on the resourceful and relatively untouched west. The American’s began to turn many valuable resources, more specifically the buffalo, that the Native American’s used for survival into commodities with the sole purpose of making a profit.

When the English settlers came over to the Americas they were not expecting to find indigenous people already there. These people were the Native Americans. Over time the English settlers formed one of two relationships with the Native Americans that they encountered. Some of the English and indigenous people became allies and worked together in hopes of benefiting their own society. Other groups of English and Native Americans did not get along and conflict broke out.

Columbus’s conquest gave rise to years of exploration and exploitation in the Americas. The results of his explorations were unfortunate for the original population of the regions he and his conquistadors subjugated. Europeans persisted in seizing natural resources from these territories. Disease brought by the Europeans diminished the population of natives. The Americas were eternally transformed and the once rich cultures of the Native American people were altered and forgotten, hindering the world from completely understanding even their existence.