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Images of Native American displacement (forced by the "Indian Removal Act") were prominent in the 1800s.
"Shadow of the Owl" - John Guthrie
As Morgan Freeman states in the dramatic presentation of the Declaration of Independence, the American government of ideals did not create an ideal world. However, it did generate conversations about these ideals. William Apess exposes American hypocrisy and demands justice.
William Apess's ordination as a minister in the Protestant Methodist Church preceded by only a few months the publication of his A Son of the Forest (1829),
the first published autobiography -- and one of the earliest books of any genre wholly written -- by a Native American. In 1831 he was appointed a missionary
to his people, the Pequots, and eventually settled with the Mashpees (the name was spelled Marshpee in the early nineteenth century), the inhabitants of the
last remaining Indian town in Massachusetts. He quickly became a leader in their struggle to govern their town free of white guardians and to appoint a
minister of their own choosing for the local church.
The Mashpee Revolt broke out in 1833, and Apess's name became briefly known throughout the United States: he was, in effect, the
leader of one of the first Indian rights movements. In large part because of Apess's brilliance as a polemicist and a tactician, the
Mashpees achieved most of their demands by 1834. Apess was once more in the public eye in January 1836 when he delivered his
controversial Eulogy on King Philip in the largest hall in Boston. He died in New York City three years later. - Retrieved from "William Apess - Early Native American Poet"
Break into groups. Identify Apess' main points and list the evidence he uses to support his claims in the comment box below.
What do you think about Apess' rhetorical strategies?
How does Apess speech to preachers position American racism?
Have you ever thought of racism as a religious issue?
What did you think about the Harvard Lecture on "Other Declarations of Independence"? Did you find it convincing? Interesting? The lecture began with "Steal Away to Jesus." Listen to this song and think about how it relates to the meaning of the lecture.
In this class, we will look at both good voices and evil ones, because it is important to understand CONTEXT. Underhill's horrible account (which is found in the Norton Anthology - it's a part of the cannon of American Lit) is the backdrop for Apess personal history (and it informs his writing). This describes some of Underhill's actions during the war with King Phillip (Apess' ancestor).
War and violence are traditionally tied to spiritual beliefs and practices, even though these things seem antithetical. War is a place where MANY people (at the same time) confront the reality of life and death and have to come to terms with it. Throughout history, many groups took their deities or representations of those deities to war with them. In the United States, soldiers carried saints' medallions and Bibles into battle.
Underhill uses religion in several places in this account. Underhill's conception of the Divine is probably not the same as anyone in this room (The Antinomians are not an active sect, like the Puritans. Although some people still talk about antinomianism in Christianity and other religions -just as they talk about puritanism- it is discussed as a trend not as a sect or self-identifying sect that I could find). So let's look at Underhill's use of religion as objectively as possible. What is religion DOING here? How does it work in the narrative? How does it work for the author. Break into groups and discuss it for 10 minutes.
Rhetorical Strategies:
Rhetorical strategies are argumentative approaches that you've used your entire life (we're just naming things you already recognize).
Logos: appeal to rationality or reason (logic)
Ethos: appeal to authority or values (ethics)
Sex Appeal (this actually falls under ethos - the "value" of sexuality)
More links for rhetorical appeals:
Red Jacket was another great Native American statesman and rhetor who used words (and religion) as a form of protest.
What was his main point?
What evidence does he use?
How does his challenge function (rhetorically) in this response?
Google responses by international Christians to white imperialist Christianity. How does Red Jacket's response resonate with other international critiques? How has the Church grown despite the hypocrisy of people who claim to be Christians while they rob, steal and cheat?
The texts we've been reading/discussing today are primary texts. These are secondary texts. What's the difference?
Primary texts are original texts, creative works, relics, or artifacts. By contrast, secondary texts are ABOUT primary texts. See "Primary vs Secondary Sources."
Break into groups and discuss Neil White's interpretation of the early encounters between Native Americans and Europeans. What are his main points? What evidence does he use to support these points? Write your answers in the comment box below.
The "Introduction" to The Dark End of the Street bridges the ideas that Apess first addresses and Louis Sacchar expands upon in Holes: the way gender and sexuality are a part of the discussion of race and citizenship in the U.S.
More Resources: