AMIND 440 Study Guide For Exam 1

Blog #1:
Q: Lastly, please discuss your reactions to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED Talk. What points
from her talk stood out to you? Why do you think we're beginning our American Indian Studies course
with this video? Or, in other words, how do you think this talk might relate to our course or serve as a
lens through which we can approach the subject matter?
A: After watching Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED Talk, it allows me to see things from multiple
perspectives than seeing things one-sided. What stood out to me was when Adichie was telling the
audience a story that her mother told her which was about how poor Fide's family was until Adichie's
family came to visit him. Adichie was surprised that his mother was able to weave a basket since she was
told of how poor the family was and assume that they can't afford anything. This is significant because it
allows Adichie to see Fide's other side of the story. When she was young, she read British and American
children books which allowed her to picture the stereotypical blue eyes, blond hair Caucasian person.
Adichie also mentions how John Locke portrayed African Americans as "People with no heads," and it
was very offensive to African Americans. This is an example of judging people based on their beliefs,
appearances, and culture. I think we started on this TED Talk video in order to understand the bigger
picture and try not to be blinded by your own beliefs or views on others due to media. We are taught to
see things on one side and not the other, however we need to keep an open mind. This relates to our
course by trying to help us understand how stereotypes hurt other people due to social media,
newscast, TV, children books, movies, and the props that they sell such as Indian costumes during
Halloween. The video is also trying to help us understand the Native Americans' perspective and to be
more aware of what they gone through due to American settlement, stereotypes, and mistreatments.
Blog #2:
1) Why might it be important to briefly consider the peoples’ history of the Valley of Mexico,
Central America, and South America before discussing the first peoples of the modern-day
United States based on the textbook chapter? In other words, how might the history of the
Olmec, Maya, Aztec, and Inca encourage us to think differently about the popular
narrative/mainstream history of the US?
2) How might this week's material connect to at least one of our key terms from last week's
Module 2?
3) What were some key points/quotes that resonated with you from this week's textbook chapter,
"Follow the Corn," and why? Please include specific examples.
4) What is to be Dunbar-Ortiz's overall argument in the chapter, "Follow the Corn"? In other words,
what seems to be the main idea or most important take-away?
5) What are your thoughts/reactions to Winona LaDuke's TED Talk, and why might it be significant
in our understanding of this week's material?
It is important to consider the people' history since they developed the civilization and culture that
formed today's society. The four Mesoamerican civilizations encouraged us to think differently about the
popular narrative history of the US through the development of their culture, which has shaped our
modern world. The Olmec developed writing and calendar system that influenced the Aztecs and the
Mayans. The Mayans created the 365 days calendar system, the concept of zero, and glyph writing. The
Mayan's culture, science, governmental and economic practices spread throughout the lands. On page19
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of the textbook, modern astronomers are known for studying closely at the accuracy of the Mayan
charts of the movement of the moon and planets. The Aztec established schools, and the Inca developed
road system that are being used today.
This week's material connects to last week's key term, "firsting and lasting" by stating how agriculture
was practiced first by Mesoamericans. However, we couldn't conclude whether this was true or not, due
to the lack or scarcity of historical sources. Even though they disappeared, their inventions and culture
are still having a global impact on our modern society.
The first quote that resonated with me, which is on page 17, stated "population densities in precolonial
America were supportable because the people had created a relatively disease-free paradise." I chose
this quote since it's really interesting that they were able to stay healthy and clean. According to the
textbook, there were diseases and health problems, and the way that they kept diseases away from
them were through the practices of herbal medicine, surgery, dentistry, and ritual bathing. The second
quote, is that "Indigenous peoples for whom corn was and is their sustenance believe it was a sacred gift
from their gods," since corn wasn't very well-known to the Mesoamericans, they thought it was a food
that was created by their gods.
Dunbar-Ortiz's overall argument is that even though the Mesoamerican colonies had been conquered by
other invaders, however, they tried to maintain a relationship with their invaders.
I find that Winona LaDuke's TED Talk was really interesting. She spoke of how food is a part of our culture
and that it's not something you just eat mindlessly. It’s heartbreaking that their once-sacred food has
been genetically modified and patented, which adulterates the originality of that food. This is significant
to our comprehension of this week's material, due to the fact that we learn the values of their culture
and how it's affected by industrialization, as well as how food is a part of our culture.
Blog #3:
1. Why do you think this week's chapter from the textbook is titled, "Bloody Footprints"? What is a
quote or example from the chapter that really seems to capture your interpretation, and why?
2. What were your initial thoughts/reactions to the excerpts from William Bradford's "Of Plymouth
Plantation"?
3. What were your thoughts/reactions to "the true story" of Pocahontas Myth?
4. What is the “national myth” that continues to perpetuate the Pocahontas Perplex discussed in
Green's article?
5. What are the impacts of the Pocahontas Perplex? What does Green advocate in the conclusion?
6. How do Bradford's "Of Plymouth Plantation," the true story behind the Pocahontas Myth,
Disney's Pocahontas, and Rayna Green's "The Pocahontas Perplex" seem to relate to Adichie's
"The Danger of a Single Story"?
7. How might the contemporary examples of the Pocahontas Myth and representation of Native
women in the media relate to the "Bloody Footprints" covered in this week's chapter?
I think the chapter of the textbook is titled, “Bloody Footprints” since it gives us details about the
ruthless mass slaughter of the Native Americans population by the European settlers who took over their
lands so the Europeans can expand their territory. A quote that capture my interpretation would be on
page 72 of the textbook, “During Lord Dunmore’s War, Shawnees and other Indigenous people. .
.murdering band of settlers who were led by a wealthy land speculator, intent on destroying their nation
and wiping them from the face of the earth.” This quote captures my attention because it relates to the
Trail of Tears and other Native Americans massacres.
I’m intrigued at the fact that the Native Americans were peaceful people until the Pilgrims armed
themselves and attack the Native Americans due to their uneasiness. I have read about “the true story”
of Pocahontas back in high school for my English class. I felt very upset that the Native Americans are
being wrongly portrayed for money and entertainment. The story of Pocahontas has been altered and
manipulated to the point where no one truly knows the actual story of Pocahontas.
The “national myth” is the belief that Indians are only good when they help and save the white settlers
since Pocahontas was a “good Indian” for saving John Smith from being killed.
The impacts of the Pocahontas Perplex are that the Indigenous women are held up to the misleading and
untruthful image of Pocahontas. Green advocate in the conclusion that men should not view women as
someone they are not and to see them as who they truly are, not by some idealistic image that appeases
to the white man’s desires.
I was always taught that Native Americans and the Pilgrims got along really well, but it turns out that’s a
lie. This is because in Bradford’s “Of Plymouth Plantation,” the Pilgrims were uneasy of the Native
Americans and attack them. The tales of Pocahontas was misinterpreted because of John Smith’s
perspective rather than from Pocahontas perspective. This correlates to Adichie’s “The Danger of a Single
Story,” since the story of Pocahontas has been manipulated and changed to fit the Pilgrims image of
Pocahontas.
Pocahontas Myth and the representation of Native women in the media relates to the “Bloody
Footprints” by the fact that they were true story about Native Americans. For example, in the textbook
chapter, the “Bloody Footprint”, women were taken as slaves which correlates to Pocahontas Myth.
According to the Pocahontas Myth, Pocahontas was taken as a slave at a young age.
Blog #4:
1. First, how did the Indian Removal plans/policies emerge based on this week and last week's
materials?
2. Next, please rhetorically analyze Andrew Jackson’s speeches (inaugural and second annual
message.) How would you analyze the overall language/tone Jackson uses in his speeches? How
does his language/tone change with each speech? Who is his intended audience in each speech,
and what are his goals regarding dealings with American Indian tribes?
3. What kind of patterns or trajectory do you notice in Jackson's two speeches?
4. After, please rhetorically analyze Andrew Jackson's" Letter to the Cherokee". What about the
tone, intended audience, and purpose in the letter? What were some key quotes/parts that
stood out to you, and why?
5. Lastly, what aspects of the chapter "Jackson's White Republic" stood out to you? What, in your
opinion, was a key passage or quote, and why? What are your overall thoughts/reactions to this
week’s materials?
Based on this week and last week’s materials, the Indian Removal policies emerged due to Native
Americans resistance against Jackson’s assimilation attempt. Jackson realized that the Native Americans
wouldn’t obey him on his aspect (American lifestyle), so he forced them to give up their tribal lands, that
they were resided in, to move to another land.
After reading Jackson’s first inaugural address and his second annual message, his overall tone varied for
each of his speeches which were filled with different goals and values. Jackson’s tone in his first inaugural
address was sincere. His intended audience for his first inaugural and second annual address were the
citizens of the United States. His goals were to maintain peace and to strengthen the relationship
between the United States and the Indigenous people. When he said, “It will be my sincere and constant
desire to observe towards the Indian tribes within our limits a just and liberal policy, and to give that
humane and considerate attention to their rights and their wants which is consistent with the habits of
our Government and the feelings of our people.” I feel like he wanted to help the Native tribes by giving
them their own rights and to be on good terms towards the Native. However, in his second annual
message, he takes more of a serious and questioning tone. He is questioning his own values over the
Natives’ values. He refers to the Native Americans as “wandering savages,” and his motives changed. He
used a serious tone when addressing his “Indian Removal Act,” to disregard the Native Americans as
equals, even though they have lived there longer than the white settlers. His motives had clearly
changed, and he saw that the only way for the Natives to live in the United States peacefully is to either
submit to the “American” lifestyle or to surrender their lands and settle on the western portion of the
United States.
In Andrew Jackson's " Letter to the Cherokee", he first starts off as a considerate person, but then
developed a more hostile attitude towards the Cherokee tribe. The letter was meant for the Cherokee
tribe in the east of the Mississippi River. In the letter, he started off by listing reasons as to why the
Cherokee must move out of their territory and the benefits they will get in return for leaving their home.
In the end of Jackson’s letter, he informs the tribe that if they resist, there will be consequences. It’s very
clear that Jackson wasn’t really going to establish any relations towards the Native Americans in the first
place even though he said he would. The key quote that stood out to me was when he said, “The game
has disappeared among you, and you must depend upon agriculture and the mechanic arts for support.”
This quote stood out to me since Jackson is trying to make the Native Americans convert from being
hunter-gatherers to agriculture due to the buffalo population declining.
What stood out to me from “Jackson’s White Republic” was, “To no avail did the “friendlies” prostrate
themselves before Jackson at the treaty meeting, begging that they and their holdings be spared.
Jackson told them that the extreme punishment exacted upon them should teach all those who would
try to oppose U.S. domination.” The Native Americans were asking Jackson for mercy, but Jackson
tended to show no mercy. This shows how cruel the British were to the Native American as the colonists
tried to expand their territory. I felt very angry about the fact that the Natives were killed because they
refused to leave their home that they grew up in.
Quiz #1:
1. What does colonization mean?
an ongoing process of control by which a central system of power dominates the surrounding
land and its components (people, animals, resources, etc.)
2. What tribe calls San Diego their home territory?
Kumeyaay
3. Why did we begin this week's materials by reading about the controversies surrounding the
Bering Strait Theory?
● To practice applying "historical thinking" as we approach texts
● To understand how history is shaped and how it is challenged frequently
● To understand how history is often determined by power, and to understand why it's
important to engage multiple perspectives
4. What is one example of firsting, and what is one example of lasting?
Firsting: The "founding fathers" of the United States
Lasting: The book/film "The Last of the Mohicans"
5. What does decolonization mean?
the goal of undoing/removing/reversing the presence of colonization in order to regenerate
Indigenous knowledge, epistemologies, cultures, and ways of life.
Quiz #2:
1. What was the goal of overseas expansion by European powers?
to obtain more land, resources, and labor sources
2. When did the "Culture of Conquest" begin?
When Europeans conducted Crusades to conquer North Africa and the Middle East
3. What was the main idea in the article "1491" by Charles C. Mann?
● Indians were so successful at imposing their will on the landscape that in 1492 Columbus
set foot in a hemisphere thoroughly developed and manipulated by humankind
● Recently a growing number of researchers have come to believe that Indian societies
had an enormous environmental impact on the Amazon
● Indians inhabited the Americas for much longer than previously thought, and in much
greater numbers
4. How might the "1491" article connect with our course materials?
● The article directly challenges the "Single Story," or stereotypes, of Indigenous societies
being "primitive" by showing their advanced manipulation of environments
● The article directly pushes against "Firsting and Lasting" by providing evidence of
Indigenous peoples not only inhabiting the Americas for much longer than previously
thought, but they also had sophisticated, flourishing societies long before the arrival of
European settlers.
● The article shows examples of "historical thinking" by engaging multiple perspectives
and various types of evidence to support its argument
5. What does the "Doctrine of Discovery" mean?
a government asserting the right to appropriate and de-legitimize long-established autonomous
indigenous peoples' governments based on Christendom
6. What was the argument in the "Columbus Day Comic"?
● The "Columbus Day Comic" argues that Christopher Columbus brought devastation to
the Americas, and various types of evidence is provided to support this argument
● The "Columbus Day Comic" argues that since Columbus did such horrible things,
Columbus Day shouldn't be celebrated as a holiday
● The "Columbus Day Comic" argues that Bartolome Day should replace Columbus Day
7. How was early colonization justified?
● White supremacy (belief in cleanliness of blood)
● In the name of religion (carrying the cross)
8. How might an example of our key term "historical thinking" be used in the article "1491"?
● The article shows how newly found evidence can change how history is
understood/interpreted
● The article engages multiple perspectives and opinions from experts
● The article investigates various forms evidence and data
9. What was the argument in "A Flawed Critique of Columbus Day"?
● The article "A Flawed Critique of Columbus Day" is a direct rebuttal to the "Columbus
Day Comic," arguing that the comic ignored the perspectives of indigenous peoples and
omitted the enslavement of Africans
● The article "A Flawed Critique of Columbus Day," like the "Columbus Day Comic," argues
that Christopher Columbus committed horrible atrocities and should not be celebrated
● The article "A Flawed Critique of Columbus Day" argues that Bartolome Day should not
be celebrated in place of Columbus Day -- instead the existing Indigenous Peoples' Day
should be celebrated
10. What does the "Doctrine of Discovery" entail?
● Criteria for claiming land and transfer of land
● Government by agent or proxy
● Coercion and subjugation of whole peoples
Quiz #3:
1. Why might it be important to learn about the early settler wars in the "Bloody Footprints"
chapter after learning about the Puritans?
It complicates the single story of Puritans as peaceful and coexisting with Indian tribes, and it
also shows the complex relationships between and amongst tribes
2. What was the argument in NCAI's "Proud to Be" commercial?
Native Americans are proud, diverse, modern people who identify with many different titles in
society, but one thing they do not call themselves is "Redsk*ns."
3. Why did Thomas Jefferson eventually advocate for Indian Removal to lands west of the
Mississippi?
After much resistance to "Indian Civilization" attempts, Jefferson decided the only solution
would be to physically remove Indians from lands in the southeast, away from the "harm" of
settlers and to free up lands for settlers, and so that Indians could become "civilized' at their
"own pace."
4. According to NCAI in the article "Ending the Era of Harmful Indian Mascots," why are Indian
Mascots harmful to Native Americans?
● Rather than honoring Native Americans, these caricatures perpetuate harmful
stereotypes and contribute to a disregard for indigenous peoples
● Derogatory "Indian" mascots have serious psychological, social, and cultural
consequences for Native Americans, especially Native youth
● Most concerning when considering negative stereotypes are the alarmingly high rates of
hate crimes and violence against Native peoples
5. According to the article, how did the U.S. Founding Fathers ignore the clan mothers?
● They intentionally left out the important roles of women in government and decision-
making when creating the U.S. Constitution to maintain a patriarchal society
● They created the entire U.S. Constitution based on the Iroquois Great Law without credit
and without granting Native Americans citizenship
6. What types of evidence does NCAI use to support their argument in “Ending the Era of
Harmful Indian Mascots”?
● Statistics from decades of social science research
● Quotes and facts from reputable sources
● Historical descriptions of the origins of Indian mascots
7. How might the Crusades have set the stage for future colonization of the Americas?
Europeans practiced colonization tactics in the wars against Middle East and North Africa in
11th-13th centuries, so these tactics had been perfected by the time Europeans began
conquests of the Americas. This was also the beginning of justification for colonization based on
white supremacy ("cleanliness of blood") and in the name of Christianity ("carrying the cross.")
8. What does the term "Pocahontas Perplex" mean, and what are its effects?
Definition: the perpetuated stereotypes and Eurocentric male gaze placed on Indian women.
Effects: national myth of Pocahontas; Indian women being portrayed as half good/half evil or
Princess/Squaw dichotomy; a model for Indian-white relations.
9. What was the purpose of Thomas Jefferson's excerpt from "Notes on the State of Virginia"?
In response to a French delegates questions, Jefferson compares Native Americans to Euro-
Americans to reveal that they are similar, argue against misconceptions about them, and argue
that they shouldn't be misunderstood as inferior. While still problematic from a modern-day
lens, Jefferson's views were seen as progressive at the time. Overall, he was arguing for the
Native American "Civilization Program" that would assimilate them into dominant society.
10. According to the textbook, where does the term "redskin" come from?
From a time when settlers scalped and collected Indian heads for bounties, which is why many
find the Washington Redsk*ns name to be an offensive racial slur
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