Help With RA Needed
Hi, i was wondering if i could get a second opinion on this RA that i wrote.
In 2012, David Treuer wrote an introduction for his book Rez Life: An Indian’s Journey Through Reservation Life, addressed to the American public about the injustices that Native Americans have to endure. Treuer uses emotive language, repetition, comparisons and contrasts to convey how native Indians have been mistreated, ignored and pushed to the outskirts of society, even though they have contributed so much to the nation building of America. He highlights to readers the disparity between how Native Americans are treated and the sacrifices they have made.
Emotive language is used to set up a mood of hardship and suffering for the reader. Treuer uses vivid descriptions of the landscapes that reservations are often built on, “middle of the desert, among the strewn rocks of the Badlands”. The Reader is transported to these places that evoke images of strife and the reader will ultimately feel the weight of burden placed on Native Americans because nobody would want to live in these harsh terrains. This emphasises the worst areas were given to Native Americans and that life is difficult for them, highlighting the unfair treatment of native americans to appeal to the readers emotions. This pathos creates a sense of guilt in the reader because they are positioned by the author to feel the pain and suffering of Native Americans and therefore they also feel anger for the unfair treatment of native Americans. The author also writes that reservations are “clustered in the last places to be permanently settled by Europeans” Most readers will instantly feel compassion for the Native Americans, and this encourages them to question why native Americans have been pushed to the outskirts of society even though they, by every right, are Americans as well. This rhetorical device also acts as a metaphor because just as the land given to Native Americans is unwanted and neglected by the settlers, the Native Americans themselves are also unwanted and disposed of to the edges of society – this reveals to the readers that native americans are ostracised and pushed away by many Americans, causing the reader to think more about the . The reader feels directly involved with causing this disparity so they will be pressured to try to at least view native americans as equals and treat them fairly. Ultimately, it makes readers question why the Social divide exists - and they will realise that it is due to colonisation, which is extremely unfair. This not only tells the reader that the book will speak out about the harsh realities and injustices that Reservation life entails, but also forces the reader to relate to Native Americans, and see things from their perspectives- helping to build a more unified and cohesive nation
Repetition is also used by the author to criticise how Americans’ tendencies to segregate and isolate Indians. The continuous mentions of “Signs” clearly points out how society sees native americans as a statistic or figure rather than human beings with emotions and feelings, needs and rights. Most readers immediately associate a “sign” with something in zoos and cages, this comparison is extremely emotive because it is shocking to the readers when they realise that native Americans are viewed as animals by society. This directly places pressure on the reader to stop viewing natives as outsiders or different, but to fully embrace America’s diverse culture and accept people from different backgrounds. Furthermore, by starting the introduction with “The Sign Reads” the author already prepares the reader to a deep discussion on how Americans view natives in the book. It points out that Native Americans are simplified and placed into a separate category from Americans, effectively cutting them off from society both physically (through reservations) and mentally (by seeing them not as people but rather as animals). This rhetorical device transforms a normalised sign on the highway into a way of dehumanising and isolating natives by highlighting differences, for the reader. It emphasises how normal Americans frown upon Indians and do not treat them as equals. The readers will feel repulsed by the Objectification of natives, feeling guilt and sorrow for them not being treated like humans. It actively pushes the reader to fight against how Indians are dehumanised and humiliated.
Contrasts are used by the author to draw out the injustices of how Native Americans are treated. The “disproportionately involved in every war” contrasts with their lack of acknowledgement. It shows readers that Indians have contributed to society so therefore it deserves to be treated as equals, yet they are subject to the dehumanising experiences of living on a reservation.The audience will feel pain and empathy at this inequality and Discrimination. Readers will feel outraged that Native Americans have failed to be appreciated and represented in society. This further emphasises the stark irony between how much they sacrifice and what they get in return. The author continues to point out how the contributions of natives have been ignored, when he uses the comparison “as American as apple pie…, unlike apple pie , however, Indians contributed to the birth of America itself. ” This is an explicit jab at those who fail to recognize Indians as Americans. It proves to readers that they associate America with apple pie and other useless or trivial things instead of actual Native American people even though they were the building blocks of modern American society. Readers will feel ashamed that they have been neglected and erased from history. Logically, they should be honoured and rewarded, yet readers now know that they have been forgotten and dismissed - this further incentivises the reader to appreciate and learn more about native americans by reading the book. Ultimately, the reader is left with two clear choices: either accept Natives as Americans, or directly defy the American ideals of equality and freedom.