Emily Muller
1/21/2014 09:44:54 am
As much as I wish it was possible for the American settlers and the Sioux to co-exist I don't think it was possible. If the Sioux had not moved westward all that would have happened was that they would have been killed and taken over earlier. In "Dances with Wolves" the American settlers were ruthless and had no valid reasons for the settlers to take over the Sioux land. The Sioux were obviously more accepting to learn from the settlers, then the other way around. I believe that co-existing could have worked if the American settlers were more accepting and less ruthless.
Reply
McCall Etl
1/22/2014 12:37:23 pm
Emily, I definitely agree that the whites couldn't co-exist. If everyone was like Dances with Wolves (the guy), then yes I think it could have happened. However, seeing the way the soldiers treated him for coming into contact with the Sioux, I don't think it would have worked out very well.
Reply
AJ Brandt
1/28/2014 02:24:37 am
I agree that settlers and native could have coexisted but both sides would have to equally contribute in order to coexist.
Reply
Luke Stewart
1/28/2014 02:26:20 am
Do you think that the settlers and the Sioux could have lived together had there not been a reward for killing the buffalo and the Natives?
Reply
Elayna Muller
1/21/2014 10:59:59 am
You said the American settlers were ruthless, but not ALL of them were! I think they were just prejudice because that's all they had heard and known their whole lives. They remembered all the wrong and ruthless things the Souix did before they remembered why they may have committed those harmful acts. However, some of the settlers realized that some of the information about Sioux were incorrect and biased, so they weren't all horrible. Persay. ;)
Reply
Timmi Keisel
1/22/2014 12:42:15 pm
I love the conversation you two have going! Also, that is a very interesting and true thought that "that's all they had heard and known their whole lives." Good job to you two! :)
Reply
becca elaine
1/28/2014 11:05:31 am
makes sense. Elayna you totally help me answer this! thank you. it goes along way!
Reply
Emily Muller
1/22/2014 02:36:33 am
I didn't say that. What I'm saying is that they chose to understand the Sioux as much as they could. There was some positive and understanding settlers (obviously) but they learned it too late.
Reply
Elayna Muller
1/22/2014 05:02:18 am
Agreed. I think they most American soldiers and settlers rushed to conclusions without even thinking of another alternative.
Reply
McCall Etl
1/22/2014 12:35:36 pm
This is a pretty interesting question to me because it can go so many ways. To the Sioux, I think the Westward expansion meant that they were going to lose their homeland and the nature that they called theirs. In the movie, the Sioux tribe members would constantly ask about the whites - when they were coming, how many were coming, etc. I unfortunately think the changes were inevitable. The Sioux (and many other Indian tribes for that matter) claimed so much land. Even in the movie, the Sioux could pack up and leave and claim a new piece of territory whenever they wanted. This was territory they could defend when they were on it. With the way America was expanding, there was obviously going to be a lot of land used and taken by the Americans, and for the Sioux that depended on the land, that obviously wasn't going to go well. Another problem was the fact that the white man was plain flat cruel and hateful. I am ashamed of the white man when I watch this movie, and when I look at events in history. The white man's first thought was to fight and take over. They didn't care about the feelings or beliefs of the Sioux, and that obviously wouldn't have led to them living well together. The white man was, and to an extent still is, in it for themselves. The whites rode through the buffalo herd in the movie, and killed and took the pelts of many buffalo - an essential piece to Indian lifestyle. The white man wanted his quick dollar. A lot of adaptations would have also had to occur for the two to co-exist. For example, in the beginning of the movie, Dances with Wolves couldn't understand a word of the Sioux, and vice versa. In reality, how many whites would have been willing to take up the language? Not many. They would have expected the Sioux to learn good English. Now there are exceptions, don't get me wrong. On the other side of the coin, I think it would have been hard for the two to co-exist because there was also the threat of other tribes. The Pawnee in the movie were horrible. They were out for blood and scalps, regardless of who the white man was. However, the Americans and the Sioux could have fought the Pawnee together. Dances with Wolves, the man, that is, was the perfect example of how the two races could co-exist. They helped each other out. The problem is, how many whites would have actually done that?
Reply
Arjana Begzati
1/24/2014 02:29:17 am
Hey McCall, that is a great answer!! I really like how you have put some personal thoughts and feelings there together with very accurate information and many examples from the movie. I especially like how you say that you are ashamed of what the white men did, because I totally agree with you!
Reply
Kirsten Comstock
1/26/2014 12:45:22 pm
McCall this is a great answer. I agree with you a lot and I love how you said that you are ashamed of the white man and how they have acted through out history. I couldn't agree more. Great job!
Reply
Timmi Keisel
1/22/2014 01:08:03 pm
Westward expansion… To the white people at the time, this phrase was a dream of moving west, buffalo, adventure, and experiencing the beauty of the plains. This is what John Dunbar in “Dances with Wolves” fantasized about which was his reasoning for wanting to move westward. To the Sioux, westward expansion was nothing but a nightmare. This abundance of space was all they had ever known and all they could call their own, and they had been there centuries before the settlers. Why should they have to move? Given America’s history with the native people and leaders like Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln who had prejudices towards them, it doesn't seem there would be a way for the two groups to get along. Settlers wanted the land; they didn't want to share it, and they would use force if necessary. Also, like in the movie, learning the Sioux language, like any language, doesn't happen overnight. It would take much time to understand even simple words of each other’s language. Getting along with the Sioux would mean much patience and willingness to compromise they didn't have. Simply, it was just easier to get what they wanted by force rather than the more ethical system.
Reply
Rachel Frantz
1/27/2014 10:04:55 am
I love your response to the question. I especially agree with your point on the language barrier between the two. I don't think the Americans would have had the patience to learn a new language.
Reply
Elayna Muller
1/23/2014 05:42:23 am
Westward expansion meant life was about to get much harder for the Sioux. They knew that white men would try and take their land and try and kill them. Such as, when John tells Kicking Bird that more white men are coming, the Sioux have a meeting and Stone Calf says they'll fight for their land no matter what. He shows them the "white man" helmet and explains that white men have come before in all sorts of ways and lost. They will lose again if only the Sioux refuse to give up. It was inevitable due to the number, power, and influence of the settlers and soldiers, but the Sioux would seek a peace treaty first like they learned with Dances with Wolves. The Sioux knew there wasn't much hope in winning or war against them and that chances of peace were slim, too, but they were determined to stand their ground. The soldiers that turned up to the fort were ready for violence and were already prejudice, so the two people co-existing would not work out.
Reply
Keeya Marquez
1/28/2014 12:41:22 am
I love your point that the white people defintiely had more people and power of the Sioux. It defintley left them disinvantaged without much hope. Great answer.
Reply
Arjana Begzati
1/25/2014 03:41:18 am
Westward expansion was definitely not something favored by the Sioux and any other tribes for whom the territory was their home and for which the expansion threatened their lives. The news for the Sioux of the white men coming meant that they had to fight for their land against a force that outnumbered them greatly. This was also mentioned in conversation amongst the Sioux where one asked how many white men were coming and the other replied as many as the stars. Very early, it was obvious that the frontier would soon be taken over, as Dunbar said he wants to see the frontier before it is gone. The white people would make their way to reaching their goal, commonly using violence and not caring about the feelings of the people, which they would drive off their homeland that was the only place they had ever known.
Reply
Zane Boerner
1/28/2014 01:27:06 am
I agree with you that the changes were inevitable, but do you think or society would be very different if the mutual relation had been achieved and survived?
Reply
Kirsten Comstock
1/26/2014 12:41:27 pm
To the Sioux, Westward expansion was not the ideal situation for them. They were going to loose their land that they had for a very long time. As you can imagine this would make any person mad and this is not what anyone would ever want to happen to them. Now to the white man this was a huge dream to move west and take over. They were obviously always planning on going into the Indian areas and fighting and trying to take over. Just like in the movie John wants to go west for all the beauty and other perks, but not to fight and make enemies with the other Indian tribes. To me I feel that the changes were in fact inevitable. Settlers were coming in and if they wanted the land that the Indians were on they would do basically anything to get them out of there. The white man obviously didn't want to share this land with anyone. I wish that they could have co-existed and learned each other's way of life and languages, but instead force was used to get what they wanted.
Reply
Maddy Vogel
1/27/2014 11:13:51 am
I agree with your answer, Kirsten. White expansion and desires for land definitely created struggles for both whites and natives. However, you only mention white opposition to shared lands and coexistence. Do you think all Native American tribes would have been fine with sharing land with white settlers?
Reply
Sabrina Lousberg
1/27/2014 01:55:52 pm
I agree with you that westward expansion and the changes it brought were inevitable. I also wish the Indians and whites would have been able to communicate and learn from each other but unfortunately they were not able to do so. Good job answering this question.
Reply
Rachel Frantz
1/27/2014 10:02:33 am
Westward expansion meant the end to the only lifestyle the Sioux had ever known. The Sioux knew that the migration of whites westward would not only mean the loss of their land but also the loss of their culture and ways. To the Sioux westward expansion was simply the beginning of the end. I believe that the Sioux and Americans wouldn’t have been able to co-exist during this time in history. The Sioux and Americans had too diverse of views on life. For example in “Dances with Wolves” the Sioux had a great respect for nature. The whites did not necessarily share this idea. The Sioux would use every salvageable piece of the buffalo; whereas, the whites would just kill the buffalo for the pelts and let the other useful parts of the buffalo spoil. The difference between the whites and Sioux’s lifestyles was too great to simply have the two co-exist. The Americans also appeared to come into the new land with an air of superiority. The whites found themselves to be of a higher rank compared to the Indians. The whites viewed assimilation as a one way street with the Indians having to do all the change. Perhaps if the whites had viewed assimilation as a two way street with both the Sioux and Americans working towards a lifestyle that fit both parties then just maybe the two would have be able to co-exist.
Reply
Sabrina Lousberg
1/27/2014 01:53:47 pm
Westward expansion meant many things to the Sioux. Westward expansion was the beginning of the end to the Sioux. The Sioux knew that the white men were migrating westward and this would mean many changes for them including the only lifestyle they ever knew. They were also prepared to loss their land and culture. I believe if more of the white men migrating westward during this time period would have been more like John from “Dances with Wolves” that the Sioux and whites could have co-existed but unfortunately, there were not many whites like John during this time period. The Sioux and whites lives’ were too different from each others’ to actually co-exist. The Sioux were a simple people who respected the nature around them. Just like in “Dances with Wolves”, the Sioux would use every part of the buffalo that they could. They believed it was a huge waste to leave any useable part of the buffalo unused. The Sioux believed the land belonged to everyone as long as they lived peacefully and respected the nature on that land. The whites views of life were drastically different from that of the Siouxs’. The whites moving westward had no respect for the Siouxs’ ways of life. Just like in “Dances with Wolves,” unlike the Sioux, the whites would kill buffalo for their pelts and leave the rest of the buffalo to rot. The whites also believed they were superior to the Indians of the west. The lifestyles of the Sioux and other Indians were to vastly different than those of the whites for the two to have actually co-existed together. If more of the whites would have been willing to learn to communicate with the Indians and adapt better to their ways of life, the Indians and whites may have been able to co-exist together, but they were unfortunately unable to understand each other well enough for co-existence to happen.
Reply
Zane Boerner
1/28/2014 01:19:35 am
To the Sioux westward expansion meant the slow decline of their way of living. They knew that it was not likely for the white people to leave them alone and leave the conquistadors that Ten Bears talked about in Dances with Wolves. The views of the white settlers were drastically different from those of the Sioux. For this reason I do not believe that these two societies would have been able to live together peacefully, and one of the cultures would eventually have to give in to the other. The Sioux did not settle down and stay in one place like the settlers and did not believe in owning land. Problems would eventually arise as more settlers came because they would eventually set up camp on land that had been claimed by a settler. The Sioux would also lose their main source of food and all around livelihood. They followed the buffalo herds, and the buffalo were the staple of their society. From these animals they got their clothing food and some of their utensils, and the white hunters as we saw in Dancing with Wolves did not care how many they killed or if they wasted what they killed. This careless slaughter greatly affected the Sioux because as the herds grew smaller there was less food and supplies for the Sioux. The overall beliefs and morals of the white people and the Sioux was too different for the two to live together especially since the two could not help but be violent towards one another.
Reply
Megan Chintala
1/28/2014 01:31:58 am
I loved all your examples that you used from Dances with Wolves. It was a great way to tie in all your reasoning for the question. Keep up the good work Zane!! :)
Reply
Megan Chintala
1/28/2014 01:28:16 am
The Sioux knew that Westward Expansion would soon take over their lives. Their lifestyle would be changed, their settling ground would be changed, and their personal would soon be changed as well. Like in Dances with Wolves, the Sioux were constantly asking when the whites were coming and how many were coming. They were very concerned about these people coming over into their land and taking over. The Sioux most prized possession was their land. And if anybody were to intrude they were a dead man. But if whites were to come over, they were most likely to come in bunches. Making it hard for the Sioux to conquer them. Even though they knew that they may be overtaken soon by the whites, the Sioux and many other tribes were very interested in the white culture. They were constantly wandering about them. How they lived, what they did with their lives, what they eat. The Sioux loved their buffalo and if the whites came over they would steal their food too. The Sioux were very concerned over the idea of Westward Expansion. Indian tribes were very different in themselves let alone whites and one tribe. I don't believe the co-existing life for these two groups could of ever happened. They had way to many differences to become one of the same. Even though the Indians were very curious about the whites I don't ever think it would of ever been a successful combination. Like in Dances with Wolves they made it work with one white, but I don't believe it would of ever worked with more than one white. You would of had to communicate with a lot more of others to make it work. I just don't think the co-existing life would have been the life for these people.
Reply
Ashton Reinhard
1/28/2014 01:53:43 am
I like your answer Megan. I think you made a good point when you said how in dancing with the wolfs they figured out a way to get along
Reply
Luke Stewart
1/28/2014 02:23:50 am
As settlers moved west they came into conflict with Native Americans such as the Sioux Indians. I believe that the two people could have co-existed had the leaders of the United States not put bounty on the animals such as buffaloes and on the Natives themselves. The men moving west threw away and wasted everything and the natives could not live with that. They lost to many resources that the white men squandered away which i believe ultimately lead to the Native's downfall.
Reply
Becca Elaine
1/28/2014 11:04:25 am
i believe as Elayna has said it was the way they were raised and saw life. No one came to opposite sides with arms wide open. Such in dancing with Wolves he stated he wanted to get the view of buffloe and indians. But after the indians refused to meet the couple of times dances with wolves tried. but it took time to find trust in the white man because the way they were raised. I believe its the enviroment you grow up in and the people that have the influence on you and others. the fact that white men always tried to find a reason to find indians to kill them somewhat but as well the scenes when they wasted the buffloe and ect.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
May 2014
Categories |