The Position of Deloria on the Reasons why the Indians would Join the Wild West - Admission/Application Essay Example

Culture and Representation Culture and representation are aspects of significant importance in understanding the background of a particular occurrence within a particular society. In native societies such as that of the Americans, it is substantively evident that the dominant American society is set into captivity by certain powerful stereotypes. In a critical analysis of how such aspects are taken into perspective, it ideal that there is to a certain extent, an aspect of a primitive view in respect to how the Americans view the Indians.

Additionally, there is also the juxtaposition of the American white stereotyping of the Indian culture as an inferior. Based on such a perspective, this paper supports the position of Deloria on the reasons why the Indians would join the Wild West Shows by providing justification of his reasoning over the point of view. In the representation chapter, it is evident the various aspects discussed. First, based on the perspective that the Indians were considered primitive of an inferior culture as compared to that of the Whites and Americans in specific (Miller 212), Deloria examines a number of issues pertaining to the aspect of stereotyping on the image of the Indians.

On the chapter of “Representation,” there is the aspect of Indian violence having a significant manifestation on the silver screen. In determining the reasons pertaining to such occurrences, it is clear that Deloria makes an exploration of the participation that native actors participate in, towards the restructure and reinforcement of the historicized Indian image (Deloria 146). Based on such a perspective it is substantively clear that under the circumstances in which the Indians were in their culture considered primitive, joining the Wild West Shows would assist in the construction of Indian agency, which is a stand I support fully as Deloria addresses the issue.

Additionally, in the same chapter of “Representation,” there was the use of violent image of Indians in film, an aspect that Indians protested against significantly, especially when the images were viewed in reservations in foreign nations. As Deloria brings the aspect out, it is substantively clear that the image depicted by the Indians in the films had a role to play, which was mainly attributed to the reinforcement of the expectations of the non-Indians in the cultural setting dominated by the whites (Cook, Glickman and Malley 56).

Based on such a perspective, it is substantively evident that another reasons as to why the Indians would join the Wild West Shows or even work as extras or actors in the early film industry, is due to the fact that they had no alternative and, therefore, were forced into participating in the films considering that they were considered inferior to the white American culture (Deloria 124). Such a point of view is supported by the fact that the Indians constantly protested the violent images of themselves, especially when the pictures were viewed on reservations in the larger cities.

This shows that ideally, the Indians were reduced to consumers of the cultural artifact as was required by the Whites (Dei 79). Works Cited Cook, James W., Glickman Lawrence B. and Malley Michael. The cultural turn in U.S. history: past, present, and future. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2008. Print. Dei, George J. Sefa. Indigenous philosophies and critical education: a reader. New York: Peter Lang, 2011. Print. Deloria, Philip Joseph. Indians in unexpected places. Lawrence, Kan.: University Press of Kansas, 2004. Print. Miller, Susan A.. Native historians write back: decolonizing American Indian history.

Lubbock, Tex.: Texas Tech University Press, 2011. Print.