The Crucial Role of Native Americans Essays - 740 Words

For the better part of American history, the Indians have been viewed and portrayed as dimwitted, helpless victims that aimlessly stood by while the Europeans conquered their land, but this view has recently come under fire and has been overturned, as it was determined to be misleading and inaccurate. Two historians that have questioned the legitimacy of past beliefs regarding the Indians are Charles Mann and James Axtell. Each has made it plainly clear in their articles that the actions of Indians should no longer be treated as useless footnotes on the pages of history. While their articles are on seemingly different subjects, their views and beliefs on the importance of Indians in American history are incontrovertibly the same as both†¦show more content†¦Tisquantum was using the oblivious Europeans for his own means, and although he never achieved his goals, it is worth pointing out that he had ulterior motives for aiding the Pilgrims in their time of need. Mann does a go od job of supporting his opinion and showing that Indians were not just aloof and passive but conniving and manipulative like their European counterparts. Unfortunately, in the end all the planning and trickery in the world couldn’t have saved the Indians as they were just simply outnumbered and technologically inferior to the Europeans. James Axtell wrote the article entitled, â€Å"Colonial America Without the Indians† and it goes into extreme detail to pinpoint the impact that the Indians had on American history. Axtell picks out important events that irrefutably made the U.S. the country it is today and shows what may have happened had the Indians not been in existence. For example, America may not have been settled as quickly if not for the Indians because explorers wouldn’t have known of the hidden gold and silver deposits, many early settlements would likely have failed without knowledge and support from the Indians, and guerilla warfare was practically t aught to the Americans by the Indians and became a central piece in the winning of the American Revolution. Most importantly, however, contact with the Indians helped â€Å"Americanize† the settlers. It was the changes in the European culture brought on by the IndiansShow MoreRelatedThe French and Indian War and the American Revolution771 Words   |  3 Pages At a surface level, historical accounts of The French and Indian War and the American Revolution are presented as wars between two sides: The British versus the French and the British verus the Americans, respectively. In each war the aforementioned opposing sides held the most crucial roles in each battle that these wars lead to. 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However, it must be admitted that the fur trade success cannot be accomplished without the participation of Native and Metis females. Firstly, intermarriages which also can be called a la facon du pays between First Nation women and males who were French Canadians, British, American and Indian employees of the fur trade companies was crucial in the fur tradeRead MoreThe Positive Fiscal Influence Of Gambling On The American Economy1084 Words   |  5 PagesThe positive fiscal influence of gambling on the American economy, both locally and at the federal level, minimizes its negative aspects. The advantages of gambling are numerous and the revenue gained lends aid to a diverse group of programs from education to infrastructure. With advances in technology gambling is more lucrative than ever and is a source of jobs for millions of people as well as major source of income for the nation’s Native American tribes. 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Then again, several tribes and countries such as the United States of America’s Native American, African American, Euro-American, and Africa’s countries Nigeria, Benin, Niger, Rwanda, Ghana, and Sierra Leone have overcome obstacles to create strong, able female leaders that rule universities, colleges, busin esses, and countries judicially. The women from