The Native Americans at the time of 1830 to 1850 were being pressured by the Americans to change their outdated ways our get out of the land. The Cherokee attempt at government shows that the changes were destroying Native American culture, "Cherokee society became more stratified and unequal, just as white society had, and economic elites dominated the tribal government."[1] Caitlin's painting of Pigeon's Egg Head shows us his view of how the transformation of Native Americans to the white culture was destructive.
Caitlin’s picture shows us how a Native American, Pigeon’s Egg Head, was dressed before he left his homeland to negotiate with the Whitehouse and upon his arrival back. The Native American on the left is dressed in full ceremonial uniform that is beaded and well-fit. Those characteristics show not its value, but that it took a long time. He is wearing a full feather headpiece and holding a pipe commonly used in ceremonies. The look on his face is one of sadness or loss but stands proud despite it. Pigeon’s Egg Head on the right, upon arrival back, is wearing an expensive outfit including gloves, high heeled shoes, and an umbrella. He is wearing a top hat with a feather on it instead of the full headpiece he left with. In his back pockets there are two bottles of alcohol. His expression and stance express a certain egotistical character that doesn’t care what anyone thinks. It seems that the version on the left is shunning the other, who does not seem to care that he has left his culture behind. In the background you can see the Whitehouse on the left above bright grass, compared to the tipi above dark barren grass on the right. The ground alone seems to show a bright and hopeful past to as Pigeon’s Egg Head travels to the Whitehouse, to a dark future where the culture has faded away from the Native American.
The story of Pigeon’s Egg Head gives us the point of view from the Native Americans. Caitlin caught perfectly the view of the first impressions by the Native Americans. They viewed his outfit as a joke, laughing at the feather upon his beaver hat and his military dress. Once Pigeon’s Egg Head started to tell his people of what he had seen, they called him a liar, “He has been, (they said,) among the whites, who are great liars, and all he has learned is to come home and tell lies.” [2] After telling enough stories between his ‘white’ drinks, he became known as a medicine man; however, only one who could invent stories of wonder and amusement. A few years later he was murdered after being considered a wizard for his great medicine.
It is evident that Pigeon’s Egg Head’s story can give insight into why the Native Americans could not assimilate into the white culture. The dress of Pigeon’s Egg Head was enough of a laughing stock to cause a distance between the cultures. They viewed the dress as we would a clown, and the fact that he was drunk all the time did not help. The Native Americans could not even begin to believe anything that Pigeon’s Egg Head spoke of. Their towns, number of people, vehicles, warships, and bridges were a fictional tale to them that they would never believe. In order for the Americans to get the land, since the Native Americans did not want to look like buffoons, the Americans had to use force.
[1] Nation of Nations pg. 295
[2] Letter #55, Letters and Notes on the Manners, Customs, and Conditions of North American Indians, London:1844
I really liked your blog post because you described the way the Native American appeared before going to Washington, D.C. and after going. With your description I was able to get a good picture in my head about the Native American dress. In your post though, I would not use the word “us,” instead I would use someone or one. Another thing that I noticed was that there was a grammatical error in the first sentence (“…to change their outdated ways our get out of the land.”). The last thing is that I thought that your thesis statement does not really fit what the rest of your post is talking about.
Posted by: Jamie | November 08, 2006 at 02:33 PM