Department of Culture and Literature Faculty of Humanities Social Science and Education Encounters between Native Americans and Whites in James Welch’s Historical Novels Fools Crow and The Heartsong of Charging Elk Frid Tellefsen Svineng ENG-3992 master’s Thesis in English Literature May 2019 Abstract This thesis examines encounters between Native Americans and whites in James Welch’s historical novels Fools Crow and The Heartsong of Charging Elk. I wish to show that the encounters are forced and happen against the background of imperialism and colonialism, and occur between peoples of unequal powers. In the novels, traditional Native American culture is profoundly affected by the encroaching whites, who believe they have a God-given right to colonize and settle Indian land. The novels illuminate that the peoples involved in the encounters have incompatible worldviews and values. The Blackfeet in Fools Crow view nature as sacred and as common property, while the whites favour private property, and think nature is there for them to exploit. These irreconcilable views cause clashes between the peoples, and eventually lead to a devastating massacre. Fools Crow shows that the Blackfeet fear dislocation and assimilation. In The Heartsong of Charging Elk, the Lakotas are dislocated and about to be assimilated into white culture. The protagonist, Charging Elk, leaves America with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show, and in France, he learns that the French look upon him as a savage belonging to a vanishing people. Charging Elk is assimilated into French culture, but The Heartsong of Charging Elk shows that he is able to keep his Lakota identity. In spite of all the hardships Fools Crow and Charging Elk experience, both novels indicate hope for the future. i ii Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisor, Justin Parks, for his guidance, patience and encouragement throughout the whole process of writing this thesis. I would also like to thank Minna Niemi and Laura Castor for valuable advice on the writing process. I would like to thank my employer for the opportunity to accomplish an old dream, and all my colleagues for support and encouragement. A special thanks to Nina and Roy for their valuable help. I would also like to thank my children, Kirsten and Per Kristian, for support and help during the writing process. Finally, I would like to thank my husband, Tormod, for patience and encouragement. Frid Tellefsen Svineng iii iv Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 Theoretical Framework .......................................................................................................... 3 Imperialism and colonialism .............................................................................................. 4 First Encounters ................................................................................................................. 6 The Frontier and Manifest Destiny .................................................................................... 9 Native American Literature .............................................................................................. 11 1 Chapter 1 .......................................................................................................................... 17 1.1 Encounters in Fools Crow ......................................................................................... 17 1.2 First Encounters in Fools Crow ................................................................................. 18 1.3 Trade and Smallpox ................................................................................................... 20 1.4 Treaties ...................................................................................................................... 24 1.5 Nature, Land and Animals ......................................................................................... 30 1.6 Resistance .................................................................................................................. 35 1.7 The Massacre ............................................................................................................. 38 1.8 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 39 2 Chapter 2 .......................................................................................................................... 40 2.1 Encounters in The Heartsong of Charging Elk ......................................................... 40 2.2 Assimilation, Reservations and the White Man’s School ......................................... 42 2.3 Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show ................................................................................. 46 2.4 The Setting in France ................................................................................................. 49 2.5 Charging Elk as Belonging to a Vanishing People .................................................... 56 v 2.6 Identity ....................................................................................................................... 60 2.7 The Murder ................................................................................................................ 61 2.8 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 63 3 Chapter 3 .......................................................................................................................... 65 3.1 Fools Crow and The Heartsong of Charging Elk ...................................................... 65 3.2 Traditional Life and Traditional Values .................................................................... 67 3.3 Religious Encounters ................................................................................................. 69 3.4 Intermarriages ............................................................................................................ 72 3.5 Assimilation the Other Way Round........................................................................... 73 3.6 Encounters Between the Novels and Readers ........................................................... 75 3.7 The Endings ............................................................................................................... 77 3.8 Decolonization ........................................................................................................... 79 3.9 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 81 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 82 Works cited .............................................................................................................................. 85 vi vii Introduction In a globalized world, encounters between peoples happen on a daily basis. Meeting other peoples and getting to know them is considered a positive contribution to people’s lives. Historically, peoples have always had mutual encounters, but unfortunately there are numerous examples of encounters between peoples that have not been mutually positive, and these encounters often take place between peoples of unequal powers. Imperialism and colonialism are closely connected with these encounters. In this thesis, I will analyse encounters between Native Americans and whites in James Welch’s historical novels Fools Crow and The Heartsong of Charging Elk. How does James Welch use encounters between Native Americans and whites to provide both Natives’ perspectives and whites’ perspectives to illustrate the effects of imperialism and colonialism? My reading of Welch’s novels shows that the encounters between whites and Natives tended to be forced, took place under conditions of unequal power, and resulted from the fact that Natives had something the whites wanted: land. The first novel shows this very clearly, while the second shows the effects of the whites’ urge for land: dislocation and assimilation. Fools Crow is set on the Great Plains of Montana and The Heartsong of Charging Elk is set in France. The characters in the first novel are afraid of acculturation and displacement, and in the second novel all these processes have already occurred. Finally, I will propose that The Heartsong of Charging Elk shows that Native Americans can keep their identity in changing circumstances. James Welch was Blackfeet on his father’s side and Gros Ventre on his mother’s side. In addition, two of his grandfathers were of Irish origin, which makes Welch mixedblood. According to Owens, a mixedblood is “a native American of both Indian and European ancestry” (Mixed 5). Welch is proud of his Indian background: “I have always considered myself an Indian,” he declares in an interview (Lupton 3). Among Native Americans there is a discussion regarding what they are going to call themselves. There are several options including tribe names, “indigenous,” “aboriginal,” “Native American,” “American Indian” and “Indian”. Blanka Schortz claims that “all of these terms have slightly different meanings and connotations associated with them” (20). She writes further that the terms have marginally divergent definitions in different countries. In my thesis I will use both “Indian,” because it is used in the novels and “Native American,”