"Virginia" and the First English Settlements in America
In Virginia, Scarlet visits Jamestown, Virginia, one of the earliest settlements in America. It was here, along the James River, in 1607, that the first permanent English settlement in America was inhabited. Though at first relations with the Native Americans were positive, they turned quite negative in 1614, when the first battles between the whites and the Native Americans began. Though they were strong, the Native Americans could not hold the land for themselves forever. When more and more people immigrated to the United States, they gradually were pushed off their lands, and kept being pushed around throughout the whole colonization of the United States.
Many of the Native Americans were quite excited at first for the arrival of new people to their lands. However, when they were treated so terribly by the white settlers, there was a great sense of disappointment among many Native Americans. Much of the literature written by those who lived during these times reflects this disappointment.
One such story is Sarah Winnemuccas Life Among the Piutes. It was written in 1883 and takes place during a time in which the whites were rapidly settling America, displacing the Native Americans along the way. She says, They came like a lion, yes, like a roaring lion, and have continued so ever since, and I have never forgotten their first coming (Winnemucca 335).
She talks about her Grandfather, chief of the Piute nation. He was a very friendly man who looked forward to the coming of the white man. When they first arrived, he was quite excited and rushed to greet them. He was let down, however, when they wanted nothing to do with him or his people. Nevertheless, he kept a positive attitude and anticipated their return. When they returned the next year, her Grandfather became friends with a white man called Captain Johnson.
Tragically, things turned ugly fast, and news of whites killing, raping, and abusing Native Americans soon came over to her village. One night, they were forced to leave their village, and, in order to keep her daughter safe, Winnemuccas mother buried her alive in the ground, keeping her hidden. She vowed that the next time she is buried, she shall be in the sweet rest of peace (Winnemucca 338).
Winnemucca then goes on to discuss the traditions of her people, and how important these traditions are to each member of her community. Her people are being viewed as cruel and barbaric, but she is describing the peaceful, beautiful nature of her culture. She says, Our children are very carefully taught to be good (Winnemucca 338). The whites, on the other hand, have turned out to be the barbarians: It is always the whites starting the wars, for their own selfish purposes (Winnemucca 341).
As with the other works, Winnemucca discusses her resentment toward the white people. They are violent and closed-minded, hungry for money and land. She does not see how they can view people as barbaric just because they have a culture different from their own. She ends the piece by bitterly saying, This is the way my people teach their children I have never in my life saw our children rude as I have seen white children and grown people in the streets (Winnemucca 341).
White settlers have shown the Native Americans how ignorant they can be, and there were vast amounts of resentment among the Native American people because of it. Native Americans did not understand how white settlers could put ownership on the land, something they cannot claim to own. Yet, they did claim it, and continue to do so centuries later.
The song has a faster pace as the piano keeps up with the percussion of the song. The lyrics make references to the land being taken over. She says, so Hundreds of
years go by / the Red Road carved up by Sharp Knife (Amos). She also calls the land she, and says it loses a little each day / to ghetto pimps / and presidents (Amos), whom she cant recall what they represent (Amos). She does not feel that those who had taken over the land represented all of the inhabitants of the land at the time. She is still unsure that those in power represent all the lands citizens, even today.
Many of the Native Americans were quite excited at first for the arrival of new people to their lands. However, when they were treated so terribly by the white settlers, there was a great sense of disappointment among many Native Americans. Much of the literature written by those who lived during these times reflects this disappointment.
One such story is Sarah Winnemuccas Life Among the Piutes. It was written in 1883 and takes place during a time in which the whites were rapidly settling America, displacing the Native Americans along the way. She says, They came like a lion, yes, like a roaring lion, and have continued so ever since, and I have never forgotten their first coming (Winnemucca 335).
She talks about her Grandfather, chief of the Piute nation. He was a very friendly man who looked forward to the coming of the white man. When they first arrived, he was quite excited and rushed to greet them. He was let down, however, when they wanted nothing to do with him or his people. Nevertheless, he kept a positive attitude and anticipated their return. When they returned the next year, her Grandfather became friends with a white man called Captain Johnson.
Tragically, things turned ugly fast, and news of whites killing, raping, and abusing Native Americans soon came over to her village. One night, they were forced to leave their village, and, in order to keep her daughter safe, Winnemuccas mother buried her alive in the ground, keeping her hidden. She vowed that the next time she is buried, she shall be in the sweet rest of peace (Winnemucca 338).
Winnemucca then goes on to discuss the traditions of her people, and how important these traditions are to each member of her community. Her people are being viewed as cruel and barbaric, but she is describing the peaceful, beautiful nature of her culture. She says, Our children are very carefully taught to be good (Winnemucca 338). The whites, on the other hand, have turned out to be the barbarians: It is always the whites starting the wars, for their own selfish purposes (Winnemucca 341).
As with the other works, Winnemucca discusses her resentment toward the white people. They are violent and closed-minded, hungry for money and land. She does not see how they can view people as barbaric just because they have a culture different from their own. She ends the piece by bitterly saying, This is the way my people teach their children I have never in my life saw our children rude as I have seen white children and grown people in the streets (Winnemucca 341).
White settlers have shown the Native Americans how ignorant they can be, and there were vast amounts of resentment among the Native American people because of it. Native Americans did not understand how white settlers could put ownership on the land, something they cannot claim to own. Yet, they did claim it, and continue to do so centuries later.
The song has a faster pace as the piano keeps up with the percussion of the song. The lyrics make references to the land being taken over. She says, so Hundreds of
years go by / the Red Road carved up by Sharp Knife (Amos). She also calls the land she, and says it loses a little each day / to ghetto pimps / and presidents (Amos), whom she cant recall what they represent (Amos). She does not feel that those who had taken over the land represented all of the inhabitants of the land at the time. She is still unsure that those in power represent all the lands citizens, even today.
