Essays and Research Papers on Native Indian Studies

A 4 page overview of the fact that despite the tendency of early historians to skim over details on group distinction among Native Americans, early colonists were very aware of those distinctions. The author reviews Daniel Richter’s “Facing East from Indian Country : A Native History of Early America” and Karen Kupperman’s “Indians and ...

A 16 page paper discussing the history and fate of the Anasazi, ancestors of the Pueblos occupying the American Southwest for a period of time measured in thousands of years. The Anasazi disappeared abruptly, however, in the 13th century. Investigation points to drought, but some researchers believe that the Anasazi committed environmental missteps ...

This paper outlines the history and current status of this North and South Dakota tribe of Sioux. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

A 4 page consideration of the many gains that were made in interactions between whites, blacks, and Native Americans during this critical time period in American history. While there were great losses, both in terms of culture and in terms of basic rights such as freedom and property ownership, there were also many gains. ...

This is a 6 page paper discussing the man eating bird “Hokhokw” mask of the Kwakiutl Indians as displayed at the American Museum of Natural History. The mask was used in potlatch and secret ceremonies of the Kwakiutl and is an excellent example of the transformational masks of that time as the hinged beak opens ...

A 4 page overview of the now infamous Navajo Code and the people that created it. This paper reviews the history and the accomplishments of the Navajo Code Talkers. Bibliography lists 3 sources.

This 12 page paper attributes the problems Native Americans are now experiencing to the loss of their traditional cultures and lands as a result of interaction with European peoples who now represent Canada's majority. Bibliography lists 10 sources.

A 4 page overview of the early interactions between Europeans and Native Americans. The author identifies the overriding goal of Spanish colonization as greed and relates the fact that that goal determined the manner the Spanish regarded and treated the indigenous inhabitants of the so-called "New World" as well as the way these people ...

A 9 page paper which examines the affects of European diseases upon aboriginal people of the world. Bibliography lists 7 sources.

A 3 page review of the interactions that occurred during colonial times between Native Americans and the Europeans that invaded their lands. The author observes differences in colonial administration and goals Bibliography lists 3 sources.

A 15 page address of the question which has occupied historians for centuries, why were Native Americans not only able to survive but to thrive in a land where European colonists would at first flounder and many times perish? The author of this paper explores various sides of the debate to conclude that the speculations ...

A 7 page assessment of the contention “For both (European and Native Americans) survival and the enhancement of their own culture were the paramount objective” made by author Gary Nash in “Red, White, and Black: The Peoples of Early North America”. This paper illustrates the interaction between Native Americans and the French, Dutch, Spanish, ...

5 pages in length. The writer discusses how European expansionism culminated in war and disease for the Native Americans. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

A 5 page discussion of the reasons behind the racism which has existed in regard to Native Americans for the last five hundred years. Identifies Europeans misperceptions and stereotypes regarding Native American culture as being at the root of this racism. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

A 5 page consideration of the motivations that characterized the early interactions between Native Americans and the Europeans that invaded their shores. European peoples not only took advantage of Native Americans but committed one atrocity after another in their attempts to prosper from them. The Native Americans, though initially deceived by the Europeans, ...

This 4 page paper reviews key laws and Supreme Court rulings relating to these issues. Bibliography lists 6 sources.

4 pages in length. Given the proper circumstances, traditional Native American cultures could never have co-existed alongside European American cultures, inasmuch as neither one even remotely upheld the same attributes. The Native Americans lived their lives in accordance to a higher influence supported by their affinity with the land and its animals; theirs ...

A 10 page exploration of the impacts of European introduced disease on the indigenous inhabitants of the Americas. Examines both biological and cultural reasons for the susceptibility of the Native peoples to these diseases. Bibliography lists 9 sources.

A 4 page discussion of the ways Native Americans and Europeans differed and how these differences translated into differences in survivability in the Americas. Although initially they had the advantage, it was the Native Americans that were forced to change in regard to their lifeways and even their spirituality. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

A 5 page discussion of the changes which occurred in Native American cultures in the Eastern Woodlands and the West after the arrival of the European invaders to their lands. Discusses the forced relocation of Eastern tribes to western reservations despite their incorporation of many aspects of European culture, the cultural transformations of the Plains tribes from an ...

6 pages in length. The writer discusses the historic aspects of first generation presence including how, when and why they arrived, what they did for a living and how America has been both a blessing and a curse to them. Bibliography lists 6 sources.

6 pages in length. The writer discusses the historic aspects of first generation presence including how, when and why they arrived, what they did for a living and how America has been both a blessing and a curse to them. Bibliography lists 6 sources.

A 5 page discussion of one Native American woman's quest to understand cultural diversity, especially diversity in her law enforcement workplace. Relates the difficulties she encounters as a woman and how she helps to acquaint the rest of the workplace with Native American culture. Describes some of the problems Native Americans encounter and ...

This is a 5 page paper discussing structural functionalism in relation to themes presented in “Black Elk Speaks”. “Black Elk Speaks” as told through John G. Neihardt portrays several social and religious aspects of the Sioux while they are faced with their own destruction by the invasion of the white men. Black Elk, a holy ...

A 12 page overview of the traditional culture of the Creek Indians and how this culture has suffered after contact with Europeans. Outlines such customs as familial relationships, the importance of clans, and the role of women. Concludes that although the Creeks have been largely assimilated into mainstream White culture they have managed ...