Playing Indian 1

There were many reasons that the English migrated to the Americas in the 17th century. In the early 1600’s Virginia was settled by rugged men seeking financial opportunity with the Virginia Company and “riff raff” that who were sent from their native country because the gentiles could not stand the sight of them. In New England, the Puritans and Pilgrims were escaping religious persecution in search of a “City on a Hill” proclaiming that they were the second coming of the Israelites, chosen by g-d. In both cases whether it was territorial or religiously motivated, the English and other Europeans systematically stole and murdered the Native Americans. I know this seems a little confrontational but I found Playing Indian very interesting. For me personally, it is an interesting look at a subject that I dealt with greatly in my 17th Century America course last semester.

I found Deloria’s explaination the the “good and bad” Indian fascinating. Edmond S. Morgan describes this notion in his book American Slavery, American Freedom. Morgan’s opinion is somewhat harsh and argumentative, basically blaming the “Natives” as he calls them for these divides.

Deloria writes “It had become a truism that such images of good and bad Indians reveal more about the people who created them than they do about the native people themselves…” I completely agree with this statement. This is certainly not exclusive for the Native American people, we do it to African Americans, Asians, and basically anyone who isn’t white or Christian.

I enjoyed how Deloria described the concept of nationalism and equated that to the American ideal of patriotism. As if we had observed these qualities and made them our own.

Discussion Question: Is all “American” culture borrowed from a series of observations of other cultures? Are American’s constantly redefining themselves or searching for their national identity?

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