#4: A Changing View of Native American Culture

Historical context plays a large role in the influence of historical events; the time, events, culture, and society in which events take place or in which people live greatly affect the outcome of historical events. Using the painting of “Pigeon's Egg Head” as a prime example, George Catlin’s context for his paintings “drew on the dramatic western landscape and its peoples.” (Out of Many. Page 194) The times of his paintings were between 1830 and 1850, and the events, culture, and society of which people lived in at the time were ever-changing and ever-growing as America progressed toward the expansion of itself by gaining more land, particularly in the western part of what is now the United States. In “Pigeon's Egg Head,” one of George Catlin’s works between 1830 and 1850 (a time of transformation for the nation’s indigenous people), Catlin depicts Native Americans as being a very strong-willed, upright, and respectable people before the influence of white settlements came into hand.

As one examines the painting of “Pigeon's Egg Head,” he/she may notice that the left half of the painting has been devoted to Catlin’s view of Native Americans before white influence had taken place. When one scrutinizes the picture of the Native American in his tribal outfit, one sees him standing very tall and strong as if nothing could affect him; one will also notice the stern look on his face, which gives the viewer the idea that the Native American culture was very prominent at the time. The outfit that the Native American is wearing, the stance that he is in, and the firm look on his face all tie together to give the viewer an opinion that the Native Americans were also very proud of their culture. Hence, the view that Catlin takes upon the Native Americans is of great respect; he sees them as being very determined and honorable people who have strong values and are not shaken easily.

However, after the influence of the white settlements took place, the high and respectful view of the Native Americans had greatly degraded. As Catlin uses the other side of the painting to depict his view of the Native Americans after this influence had started occurring, he causes the viewer to produce the opinion that their culture has completely broken. The Native American is standing unbalanced and leaning on his umbrella, smoking a cigarette, holding a fan, and carrying a few bottles of booze while being dressed in the clothing from the white settlements (suited outfit with white gloves). These items not only show that he is dishonorable, yet they also show that he has become too full of pride as he boasts with them. The overall point of view that Catlin tries to depict in this section of the scene is that the white settlements have influenced the Native Americans in a very negative manner.

In “Pigeon's Egg Head,” Catlin depicts his views upon the Native Americans and their culture(s) both before and after the influence of the white settlements. As one examines the two sides of the painting, he/she comes to find that Catlin had a very optimistic view of the Native Americans before they had been influenced by the white settlements, portraying them as noble and honorable people. However, after the white settlements had influenced the Native Americans, Catlin’s view had greatly changed. His view of the Native Americans became much more negative; and to exemplify this negativity, Catlin had the Native American in a slouched and unstable position to show that he was a good-for-nothing drunk.

For More Information About George Catlin and his paintings, go to: George Catlin at Art-Cyclopedia

Bibliography: Faragher, John Mack, Mari Jo Buhle, Daniel Czitrom, and Susan H. Armitage. Out of Many: A History Of The American People. New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc., 2004.

Comments

[Maryam Adil]

Joseph,
This is a very well-written post. It is clear that you have thought about the topic quite a bit. Your thesis, in particular, is very concise and to the point.It, basically, sums up the whole point of your post in one sentence. There are few points, however, that I would like for you to keep in mind for your next post. Reread the first two sentences of your introduction. When I read it, I couldn't really get what you were trying to say. Maybe you could reword those sentences in to something like this: "Historical context plays an important role in the art of that particular era". Secondly,be carful of over repetition. Some of the ideas seemed to have been repeated many times. For example,in the introduction, you bring up the "historical context" repeatedly. This takes away from the main point of your thesis. Thirdly, be sure to make the language a tad more formal.For example, you have used phrases such as: "a good-for-nothing drunk", "a few bottles of booze", "he has become too full of pride as he boasts with them" quite a bit.
All in all, Great Job!!!

[Kamal Patel]

First of all, I'd just like to say wow. You are very articulate, and you have great diction. You are very clear, and concise in your analysis. All of these things help to sophisticate your post and make it generally more enjoyable for the reader. I honestly enjoyed reading it. I did find a few mistakes, however. They were petty ones. Some sentences could have been worded better to make them clearer, such as "The Native American is standing unbalanced and leaning on his umbrella, smoking a cigarette, holding a fan, and carrying a few bottles of booze while being dressed in the clothing from the white settlements." I believe that there is a syntactical error in that sentence where you are listing things. I think it would be more correct to write the sentece like this: "The Native American is standing unbalanced, and leaning on his umbrella, smoking a cigarette, holding a fan, carrying a few bottles of booze, and dressed in western clothes. (I think 'western clothes' in place of 'clothes from the western settlement' sort of 'declutters' it) Otherwise, I thought it was a good post, I liked reading it.