Indian Perception in 1887

1. Dictionary.com defines savage as "fierce, ferocious, or cruel; untamed."
4.a. The website that the textbook from 1887 derives from archive.org
4.b. In class, we researched and read a school textbook from 1887. We compared the definition of savage, to how the authors of the textbook talked about indians when they referred to them as "savages." In 1887, it appears to me, that the term savages was used when the Civilized Whites wanted to term the violent indian attacks. They referred to them as natives and to the women as squaws when examining their culture.(4.c.) If I read this in 1887 as a student, I believe that my thoughts on Indians would lean towards a violent suppressive society of uneducated barbaric people roaming the Western part of the United States.

Newspaper

March 1, 1872

Las Vegas, Nevada

Todays paper, The Las Vegas Gazette wrote the most intriguing article today. They suggested that we should form an alliance with the Indians. Why would anyone get the idea to pair up with the murderous savages that dwell in the plains. As civilized people of the 19th century we should be looking to the future. Looking through the ads today I saw many injuries for attorneys. I hope I'll be able to reach one of them. I will also be interested in looking for a hotel as well as a tailor. I also read of a Servant girl up in Vermont who attempted to cut off the nose and fingers of her mistress and assaulted the mistress. Things are heating up. Peoples ideas are changing. People are becoming more accepting and compassionate I'm not sure how I feel about this.

Indians in western newspapers(1965-1985)

 In the 1870's there was a taboo surrounding the Indian culture. On March 1, 1872, The Las Vegas Gazette wrote a controversial paper on the use of indians as soldiers. It is visible that this was a very liberal essay with progressive ideals for the future of Indians. The writer of the main article suggests that the brave culture and honor that indians have would make them ideal for war. He believed that the issues between groups of indians could be resolved if they were grouped together. Looking at it today, it would be considered racist, or politically incorrect, however I believe that at the time this would be seen as a radical idea probably rejected my the populous.

Newspapers vs social media

Our use of social media is selective and intentional so that we tend to remain interested in only things we've already been interested in, where as newspapers expose readers to information on a broad range of topics. This can connect communities by providing information about what others mat be interested in. It may raise question I never thought to ask.

Newspaper Research

1. Dictionary.com defines a newspaper as, "a publication issued at regular and usually close intervals, especiallydaily or weekly, and commonly containing news, comment, features,and advertising."

2. According to Wikipedia newspapers originated in Europe in the early 17th century following the release of the printing press.

3. According to Wikipedia the Boston News Letter is the oldest newspaper in the United States. It was created in 1704 in Boston Massachusetts.

4. The leading stories in The Wall Street Journal is "Dell to buy EMC for $67 Billion", "Libya's Masked Men Hunt Human Smugglers", and "Barclays To Name American Its CEO".

5 Wikipedia defines a newspaper of record as, "A newspaper of record is a major newspaper that has a large circulation and whose editorial and news-gathering functions are considered professional and typically authoritative."

6. According to Wikipedia America's first newspaper of record was The New York Times.

7. Social media has revolutionized the ability to stay connected with current events. It enables millions of users to share primary sources in real time, globally, for free. The conception of Facebook and Twitter enabled people to connect and share ideas, opinions, and thoughts on topics or events as they happen. Compared to the newspaper, which can only deliver some news at a cost with a delay. To summarize, social media has speed up the news process and allows anyone with internet and government permission the opportunity to share and learn of news and opinions.

8.

Jim Thorpe - Native American research

Jim Thorpe may be the greatest athlete of all time. This statement may sound weird because not many people have heard of Jim Thorpe. I learned about Jim Thorpe when I was around ten. My grandfather told me about how he met the man, and how he was one of the greatest football players of all time. He has the credentials, but records aren't everything.

Through researching, I learned that Jim Thorpe overcame great adversity as a native american. "Thorpe played football for Carlisle Industrial Indian School"(wikipedia), it was at this school where Jim began to shine. He gained popularity for being and Indian school defeating big Ivy League schools. He was an all-around athlete and this led him to the olympics. In the 1912 olympics Jim Thorpe set the overall record of the highest score in a decathlon and the pentathlon. The decathlon's record stood for 100 years, to be broken by Aston Eaton at the 2012 London Summer games. Globally Kings and Czars were awarding him. All of his medals were stripped of him because he wanted to play minor league baseball in 1909. He was the original Bo Jackson. He played many sports like football, baseball, and track and field events.

He played under the legendary coach Pop Warner, one of the most iconic names in football. He ended his baseball career with a .307, and to paraphrase Student Pulse,  The Associated Press comprised of 400 sportswriters united to name the greatest athlete of the century. This list includes: Babe Ruth, Joe Louis, Jesse Owens, Red Grange, George Mikan, and Bobby Jones. He had more votes for the number one athlete than all of the other athletes combined.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Thorpe#Amateur_career
http://www.studentpulse.com/articles/15/redskin-and-all-american-jim-thorpes-malleable-symbolic-significance?ab=no_breaks&utm_expid=22625156-1.sV9KDyk4TvGyRo_tLTD5HA.1&utm_referrer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.studentpulse.com%2Farticles%2F15%2F2%2Fredskin-and-all-american-jim-thorpes-malleable-symbolic-significance

1st Quarter Reflection

This quarter in US History, I have grown, and laid a foundation of a basic understanding of the United States of America from the beginning of the US and its growth to the Western Expansion in the mid/late 19th century. A reoccurring theme has appeared from my perception of class and research. The US tends to grow and expand in an unethical way, then the public perception of reality is skewed and uncertain. Misconceptions begin to form around history, creating a hero and a villain.

This concept of a hero and a villain is a repeated concept throughout US history starting with the first to colonize the US, slaves. Slaves built the US, literally. The reason that the United States is the powerhouse that it is toady is because it started out as a major producer in the world economy for agriculture and fabrics. Without slaves to do this awful, mostly unpaid manual labor, the US would not be what it is today. The people at the time saw slaves as different and lower class humans. This separation created tension that is still present today. Towards the end of slavery, the US has this romance with the West. It was seen as a raw and untouched masterpiece of beautiful terrain. This fascination followed by financial prospects led to a large scale expansion into already conquered land.  The East was seeing these beautiful works of art and hearing stories of these brave frontiersmen. Children we captivated by brave Cowboys fighting off the Indians, and shooting the bad guys. Both of these examples are how the US creates lies to entice the nation to grow and expand. However as bad as slavery was for African Americans, and as bad as the Western Expansion was economically for families and those already settled there, these events helped the US grow into what it is today.

 

I have also been tracing patterns of culture like film and entertainment. I am fascinated with film production and arrangement, because of this I tend to look for a reason. I am constantly asking in my head, "Why." I want to get my head into the minds of those of who we are studying, and learning how to emphasize with history has taught me how to do so. I have not only grown in basic information, I have learned how to look at history. Instead of watching a movie casually and watching it for the entertainment, I now watch the movie for its meaning. When I heard we were going to watch movies for History, I was excited. I wasn't excited because I thought it would be an easy grade, I was excited because it is something I am passionate about. I could talk for hours on my view of the directors reasoning behind an aspect of a movie, and I have been allowed to write about it instead. Moving forward, I would like to continue with some movie research applicable to History. Being dyslexic my reading comprehension is poor, and watching film or documentary helps me to visualize what history was. I would also be interested in pop culture. I believe that looking into what a society idolized is just as important as what a society has accomplished, because by looking at pop culture, one is able to get a "sense" of what a group of people liked.