In the third section of Reservation Blues, we learn that Indian reservations are not so different from regular communities all over America, contrary to what some people may believe. An example of this is when Lester FallsApart's dog dies. The narrator goes on to describe Lester as a no good drunkard, but people still gravitate towards him and all attend his dog's wake and funeral, as if he is some kind of "tribal hero". The narrator describes Lester as this drunkard and says, "One on every reservation, one on every reservation," (151). This reminds me of everyday communities. Every community has that one guy who is known for a certain thing that other communities have a guy that is known for. It's just like how everyone knows that one guy who is a jerk or the funny guy or the guy who smells bad. Living in a small town, I know first hand that this is true. This shows how communities within reservations and tribes function more or less the same way that the rural communities that we live in do.
One thing that bothered me in this section of the reading, was the conversation between the Whitmans and Father Arnold. The Whitmans show Father Arnold an empty box and tell him that the box contains faith. When he asks them what they mean they say that they tell the Indians the box contains smallpox because it is the only way that they can get the Indians to listen to their sermons. Father Arnold debates this saying it is wrong, and the Whitmans reply, "Don't be such a child. Religion is about fear. Fear is just another word for faith, for God," (165). I had a big problem with this. There are some fears in religion. The fear of hell is a good example. But to say that fear is the basis of religion is in my mind idiotic. In my personal experiences with religion, I have come to the conclusion that religion is based on love and compassion. It is associated with community and a deep compassion for yourself, your God, and you peers. It is used to allow people to find comfort and healing, not to strike fear into people's lives. If that were the case, why would people choose to have religious affiliations in the first place?
I've heard this idea that religion is based on fear on several occasions, and I really believe there is some truth to it. Many would agree that religion is put into place in order to explain the unknown. This includes things like the afterlife, certain miraculous events, etc. It also seems to be common knowledge that by nature, humans fear the unknown. Why else would they be so caught up in filling in the details? Not only that, but what keeps people obeying the laws of a certain religion? The answer,is fear. Take Catholicism for example. Sure, some people follow the 10 Commandments simply because it's the right thing to do. Yet there are others who follow them just because they are afraid of being condemned to Hell. So I do think fear holds a place in religion, i think it is indeed a stretch to say that religion is based on fear. *In no way am I criticizing or advocated any specific religion!
ReplyDeleteMatt, I have also noticed how this Indian civilization is similar to the one of our modern communities all around America. As you said, it seems that on these reservation people live and have their own job within their community, as it is in American communities. For instance in the town of Seekonk there are many business which require everyone to have specific jobs in order to make the town function. An example is a garbage man, and how he needs to go through the town cleaning all the garbage. this is just like the man needed to clean up the dog that was killed. These reservations are not to far off from the communities all over America.
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