Reflection Week 2

This week we watched the second half of Dances With Wolves. John Dunbar was a changed man and had transitioned into his new perfect life. This is when the climax of the movie happened and it revealed a struggle that John Dunbar had to face.

Before Dunbar had been in contact with the Sioux, he feared and awed at the frontiers. He hoped to make peace with the Natives but, he didn't expect to become a part of their society. After saving one of the the Sioux women, the Sioux were curious about Dunbar. They shared items of their culture and made closer connections. Dunbar was awoken one morning by a stampede of Buffalo. The scenery was hazy and purple. Dunbar ran up the hill as Buffalo ran past him. This symbolizes how it was dreamlike and euphoric because there was a shortage of food and now this event was happening. The fog represented his confusion as all of this was happening. He notified the Sioux of the "tetonka" and they went on a hunting mission. He gains the trust of the Sioux and their most stubborn member, Wind In His Hair, when he saves his son, Smiles A Lot, from a wild buffalo. This is the where Dunbar becomes a part of the Sioux. He begins trading, socializing, an engaging in their activities.

After being accepted into the tribe, Dunbar has to face a fork in the road. The Sioux are moving because of the Union Soldiers expanding into their land and Dunbar decides to make a trip back to his station to retrieve his journal. He did this because it was a record of how he became part of the Sioux culture. However,his horse is shot and he is taken prisoner and treated very badly. This resembles how discriminating the soldiers were. He was being beaten and disgraced because of his change in culture even though he used to be a soldier himself. Later, some illiterate soldiers are using his journal for toilet paper which shows the lack in respect they have compared to Native Americans. Dunbar is later rescued at a river crossing and his journal washes down the river. Earlier the wolf that gave him his name, Dances With Wolves, is shot which represents his history of being Dances With Wolves is being washed away. He decides he must leave the tribe because they will try to find him as an excuse to raid the Sioux. This shows his care for his family and the sheer helplessness of the situation. Dunbar had to face a struggle that would not turn out good for him either way when he had to make a decision to abandon his people. It shows how he has transformation the inside and ho much he valued the way of the Sioux.

Reflection & Tribe Research

Navajo
The Navajo are the largest recognized tribe in the U.S. with about 300,000 tribal members. Navajo literally "Planted fields". Before contact with Europeans, the Navajo were mainly hunters and gatherers. The men took the leadership positions and were warriors/hunters while the women were farmers/caretakers. They lived in houses made out of earth called hogans which were dome shaped.

Apache
The Apache were very religious and believed that spirits were everywhere. Apache men were trained warriors at a very young age and all members were expected to defend their village. They were very talented in arts and crafts. In the 1850's the Apaches turned to scalping and raids as they were being pushed off their homeland.

Blackfoot
The Blackfoot's four independent tribes all spoke Algonquin. They often wore animal hides for clothing because of how cold the weather was. The Blackfoot were known for being hard to get along with. They fought the Assiniboine, Cree, Crows, Flatheads, Kutenai, and the Sioux.

Week Reflection Semester 1 Post #1

This week the class has been all about Dances With Wolves. Both the setting and how things are represented show the differences between the white and Native American cultures.

The settings show the difference between how the white men live and how the Native Americans live. When John Dunbar is first entering the western frontiers the establishing shots and music present the awe of the newly discovered land away from most of white civilization. The shots show amber waves of tall grass, peaceful babbling brooks, and valleys. He has never seen land so wild and beautiful and he feels in touch with nature. Living near the Sioux and the Pawnee make Dunbar live in fear because because he doesn't know what to expect of them. After he earns their trust he becomes part of the Sioux tribe and indulges in their culture and leaves most of his behind. His new environment with the Sioux gives him a new family that he is sworn to protect. He is very committed to them as compared to the U.S. Army in the civil war where he attempted suicide. I found it amazing that just the setting someone is in can change who they become and what they're influenced to do.

(This made me think about how John Dunbar must have felt when in touch with his true spirit and nature)

Much was represented by images in the film. The Sioux all took pride in their hair and it is a trophy of their accomplishments and a story of their life. They all had straight hair which they could decorate with feathers or beads. This is why some tribes like the Pawnee scalped their enemies for a trophy. This is similar to John Dunbar's diary. It tells his entire transition from a soldier to Sioux and is very sentimental to him. In contrast, the soldiers of the U.S. Army valued things for their function instead of sentimental values such as when they kill several buffalo and only take their hide and nothing else. Instead of letting the animal go to waste, the Sioux use all body parts of the buffalo for tools, decorations, tipis, and other items. They also thank the animal and believe that it dies for a worthy cause so it is very disrespectful to kill a buffalo and not use parts of it. However, the two opposite cultures do have a few intersects. They both value family highest over all else. When Wind In His Hair's son is about to be killed by a buffalo, Dunbar shoots the animal right before it can reach him and to show his appreciation, Wind In His Hair offers its heart as a gift to Dunbar as a sign of trust. Before this happened Wind In His Hair disliked Dunbar. Another time at the camp, Dunbar trades his soldiers coat to Wind In His Hair in exchange for his necklace. This symbolizes two cultures ignoring their differences and living in harmony to trust each other. Throughout the film, there were many examples of cultural differences, but personally I found myself awestruck and inspired by the fact that they came together and somehow gained trust from one another.

Reflection Over Entire Semester

The literature we have analyzed has been very intriguing this semester. Some of it has opened my eyes to how our world is cruel even if it doesn't seem like. It was a very good idea to let the students pick their own memoirs to read because the books that were chosen may have connected to the student's personal life. I found The Laramie Project to be one of the most interesting topics this semester because of the debate between whether everything happened because of bias or meth. It was interesting how much convolution happens in our society right under our noses.

There are a couple things I hope for net semester. Presenting the memoir was very difficult, even if I didn't do it in front of the class. I know what I want to say but the right words don't come out. Improvements will hopefully come in my public speaking. I think the blogs were a good idea to monitor what students reactions were but I felt that a couple of them were pointless.

This class has helped me to grow as a person. I have learned many values from the prompts we discuss and that helped me to see both sides of an argument and how everyone could have viable points. The college essay rough drafts helped me to structure an essay about myself as well as prepare me for college.
Overall, this has been one of my best LA classes and I think that no changes need to take place though.

Laramie Reflections

The mystery behind the motives of Matthew Shepard's murdering will always remain unsolved. The debate is whether Shepard was killed because of a hate crime or because of a meth induced rage. Evidence leads to reason for both sides of the argument. This weeks discussions elaborated on the case.

Some say Aaron McKinney killed Matthew Shepard simply because of a meth rage. McKinney was a well known meth addict and had been a tweaker. Some evidence suggests that Shepard owed McKinney a large amount of money for meth and that's why he tried to rob him. McKinney's actions also show that he was in a rage. When his partner in crime, Russel Henderson, suggested that Shepard had enough beating, McKinney struck Henderson with the butt of his gun and then proceeded to wail on Shepard. Later that night, McKinney had tried to rob others too and this shows that he was specifically going after homosexuals. In fact, a limo driver explains that McKinney was a bisexual so it wouldn't make sense if his crime was driven by hate.

Although there is much support behind the possibility of the crime being motivated by meth, there are many facts proposing a hate crime against homosexuals. In the interrogation of McKinney, he is asked to describe Matthew Shepard. He uses derogatory terms describe Shepard like fag and homo. His reasons for beating Shepard seemed to be homophobic because he said he'd beat him if he touched him in the truck and the way he describes Shepard trying to fight back almost makes it seem like he's trying to make him seem woman like. He said that he tried to fight back with little swings of his arms. McKinney was tested for meth traces after the crime and none were found (even though the official documents couldn't be produced) so this indicates that it might have been a hate crime.

Laramie Project Discussions

Our in class discussions revealed how the book connected to the students on different levels. For the most part, everyone seemed to see the world as being unfair to homosexuals. The biggest discussion was probably about people's bias and about whether the crime was a hate crime or not.

Many examples showed how people in Wyoming were neutral, anti-gay, or pro-gay. Some people said they didn't mind the gays as long as they stayed away from them. Even some "in-the-closet" lesbians didn't want to be caught with other homosexuals because their identities might be torn apart. It's ironic that even homosexuals were a little homophobic at the time. Others were completely against homosexuals, particularly the baptist church. People protested the funeral of Matt and others thought that he deserved to die. Many people also had close friends or family who were homosexuals. They believed that everyone should have the same rights.

Our classes feedback was very meaningful and interesting to me. Everyone seemed to be hit on different levels. Some were personal and others felt compassion or pity for the homosexual community. It was discussed that bias can really change a persons opinion and how they act. In this play news reporters, civilians, homosexuals, and the american community were affected by their biases and it showed through how they acted and what they thought about the situation.

Act 1 Reflection

In Act 1 of The Laramie Project by Moises Kaufman, we learned much about how people felt about homosexuality in their community. Many people accepted the fact that there were homosexuals but would rather avoid them. Others didn't care if there were homosexuals or not. However, being a homosexual meant that people's biases could harm them internally and externally.

In the life of a homosexual in the 90's, the world was turned against gays ad lesbians. Even the people who weren't against homosexuality were often homophobic. "And she later told me that there were other lesbians that she knew who wouldn't be seen with me. That I would irreparably taint them, that just to be see with me could be a problem" (Connolly 22). They didn't want to be marked as lesbians because they would be seperated from society. And there were people who were very much against homosexuality. They would put the importance of their own personal beliefs in front of real values such as morals, family, and equality. "And they brought me into their room and told me that if I did the scene, that they would not come to see me in the competition. Because they believed that it was wrong-that homosexuality is wrong-they felt that strongly about it that they didn't want to come see their son do probably the most important thing he'd done to that point in his life" (Schultz 12). It's terrifying how much power a bias can have over someone's decisions and bias is one of the biggest reasons that homosexuals are discriminated against. Other people display their hate against gays through physical harm. For example, Matthew Shepherd was beaten to death on a fence for the simple fact that he was gay. The attackers bias forced them to only care that he was a homosexual. People should be viewed for who they are and what they do instead of being discriminated against over something they were born with. Act 1 helps to understand the real world struggles that some homosexuals go through to this day.