Abstract This paper discusses the Indianculture's maskdance. The paper explains that the nation of India has a long history associated with dance as a form of communication and expression. The paper contends that dances are more than just a fusion of choreographic movements; dance in India represents a way of telling tales of historical events, passion, romance, and even tales of treachery and woe.
From the Paper "Dance in the culture has always represented some of the more inner reflections regarding the country's combination of historical turbulence mixed with the nation's religious and inner peace oriented factions such as Hinduism. "The Arts of India are the illustration of the religious life of the Hindus. Like their faith, the arts have been preserved for the past three thousand years, from change and decay, from foreign invasions, and from the fury of the nature. We owe its preservation to the future generations. For, it exemplifies how life can indeed revolve around the arts." (Kamat, 2004) In other words, dance in Indian culture is seen as more than just a fusion of detailed and non-meaningful movements; it is more a system for delivering aspects of the culture to the masses."
Abstract This paper examines both what the Sioux cultures were like before European contact as well as what that culture has evolved into. The paper focuses on the music of this people set within a broader artistic and cultural and even political context. The paper is broken down into four chapters: An introduction into the Sioux people, their musical instruments, the songs of the people, and finally a larger cultural context. The final section of this paper examines the Sun Dance and the Ghost Dance as the two most important single types of musical performance.
From the Paper "Traditional Sioux of the last century ? or the centuries before ? would have found the entire idea of putting on their best clothes and going to a concert hall to listen ? as relatively passive observers ? to a musical performance extremely odd. For them, as for other native peoples of the Americas (and arguably other native peoples throughout the world before the onset of industrialization) music was something that was integrated into the fabric of ritual and everyday life."
Abstract This paper discusses how Indian nations have attempted to maintain oral Indian traditions in various ways. The paper explains that the value of understanding the diversity and collective of the Indianculture is paramount to understanding the way in which modern Indians have resisted losing their native cultures. The paper also looks at how the language issue is addressed in nearly every Indian education system through a bilingual or submersion technique. The paper then points out that Reservations also serve as a center for the expression of ceremonies, dances, beliefs and customs.
From the Paper "Some Indian nations retained their oral traditions and handed down the seeds of this information to the later generations through a largely oral tradition. So, against all odds there are still Indians who understand their heritage and many modern movements have doggedly attempted to retell and transmit tradition to later generations and to others who are interested in this revival of heritage. The traditions of the past include many varied languages, beliefs, ceremonies, dances and customs. Each nation has made attempts to rekindle the expression of their cultures."
Abstract Alice Beck Kehoe's The Ghost Dance: Ethnohistory and Revitalization is a complex ethnohistorical work with a dual purpose. This paper argues that this duality is central to the main argument of the author and situates the work within the broader crisis of representation and relevance that defines the field of cultural anthropology in the early 21st century.
From the Paper "Alice Beck Kehoe's The Ghost Dance: Ethnohistory and Revitalization is a complex ethnohistorical work with a dual purpose. As this essay will argue, this duality is central to the main argument of the author and situates the work within the broader crisis of representation and relevance that defines the field of cultural anthropology in the early 21st century. As will be seen, while in the first half of her text Kehoe focuses on an analysis of the Ghost Dance phenomenon in terms of how American Indian societies have coped with radical social, economic and political change."
Abstract This paper describes the Ghost Dance religion and how it spread to Native American tribes. The paper discusses the history of the Native Americans from the time of Andrew Jackson until the Wounded Knee massacre, and demonstrates how the Native Americans were pushed farther and farther westward, and eventually limited to a very small area. The paper explains how the United States army and government's fear of the Ghost Dance religion led to the Wounded Knee massacre, describing the events of the massacre, and the political issues surrounding the massacre and the Ghost Dance religion.
From the Paper "James Mooney writes in The Ghost-Dance Religion and the Sioux Outbreak of 1890 that the essential part of the teaching of the Ghost Dance is the doctrine that the world is old and worn and the time is near for its renewal (Mooney 661). The Ghost Dance was an American Indian religious revivalist movement that spread through the Plains Indians and other ethnic groups during the 1890's and due to a culmination of events is forever linked to the Wounded Knee massacre of 1890 (Ghost pp)."
Abstract This paper looks at ballet as the form of dance. The paper presents the major argument that ballet is used to create ideas of cultural superiority. The paper considers that at the same time this cultural superiority is used to make other cultures look inferior.
From the Paper "Art forms are filled with signs, messages, symbols and a whole range of other semiotic features. In Messages and Meanings II Marcel Danesi defines art as, "Disciplined expressive activity that provides the people who produce it and the community that observes it with a range of experiences that might be aesthetic, emotional, intellectual, or a combination of these (Danesi 2004: 332)." Many activities within human societies could be considered art. Singing, music, sculpting, drawing or painting, writing and acting are all activities preformed by societies that are considered art. Each piece of artistic work is filled with symbols, signs and meanings."
Abstract The paper examines "Indian School" by Michael Cooper where he chronicles the history of the schools organized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The paper looks at how Cooper profiles some of its students and their hardships in the Carlisle Indian School in Pennsylvania. The paper discusses how the Native-Americans were forced to ignore their Indianculture and conform to the white man's ways. The author concludes that he will use this as an example of why it is important to incorporate all cultures in education.
From the Paper "In 1879, relations between the United States government and the Native Americans were very poor. The Native Americans were being forced into reservations by the expanding European-American population. Also just three years earlier, Lt. Colonel Custer and 250 soldiers were killed at the Little Bighorn River. When Captain Richard Henry Pratt came to the Rosebud Reservation asking for Sioux children, the Native Americans were very apprehensive. Captain Pratt spoke with forty warriors and chiefs and he convinced them that their ignorance of the white man's ways were actually hurting their civilization. He said the United States government would provide boarding and education for their children at no cost. After talking it over the Chiefs decided that it would be best if the children did get an education so that they would be better able to help their people negotiate with the white man. That winter hundreds of frightened Sioux children were taken by train from their homes near North Dakota to Pennsylvania, one thousand miles away."
Abstract This paper presents a cross-cultural comparison between the Mexicans living in Ciudad Juarez and the Indians who live in Ecuador. It describes how both of these groups of people have been affected by the modern world in terms of industrialization and globalization. It also discusses the effects that this modern world has had on the culture and behavior of the people in these areas.
Table of Contents:
Mexican Border Culture Ecuadorian Indians' Culture
From the Paper "Meanwhile, in the Jivaro Indians' culture, far from being murdered and disrespected, the woman is greatly prized and protected, partly because of the plants she helps grow. To give an idea of how important some plants are to the lives and beliefs of the Jivaro people, the author of the book, The Jivaro: People of the Sacred Waterfalls, Michael J. Harner, an anthropologist and an ethnographer, explains on page 70 that the "Nunui" (a spirit, or fairy), provides supernatural help for the woman of the family, which it vital to the success of important plants."
"The Nunui's help in the garden is important for the natives, not just in the process of growing food items like sweet potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, squash, red peppers, onions, pineapple, banana, and other edibles. The Nunui also helps in the growing of medicinal plants and hallucinogenic plants (drugs) such as Banisteriopsis species, and Datura Arborea."
Abstract This paper addresses the changes in American Indian warfare during the period of western settlement in the 19th century. It gives a summary of Plains Indianculture and reasons for conflict, and details conflicts between settlers and American Indian tribes. The paper's thesis, borne out in historical research, is that the introduction of horses and firearms made conflicts between US relocation forces and unwilling Indian tribesmen bloodier than necessary on both sides. The author does not take sides on the Native American sovereignty issue.
Abstract This paper explains that German culture is a "low context" culture where cultural messages are found primarily in the spoken or written word, with contextual information adding relatively little to the overall message, whereas Middle Eastern and East Indiancultures tend to be marked by meanings that are implicit and mediated by details of the situation, relationships, and non-verbal messages. The author points out that, compared to the French, Germans are famous for their direct and to-the-point speech and their insistence on following the letter of the social and legal code. The paper suggests that the Oktoberfest festival provides a temporary antidote to the strictness and formality of German culture in a specifically designed, celebratory space. .
From the Paper "However, Americans might be struck by the use of alcohol as a release from constraint, and the emphasis on sheer volume of beer consumed. Furthermore, the polka music and the emphasis on the cuteness of the lederhosen and attire worn by many of the Oktoberfest participants, another form of release from formality, might strike the eye as strange. The German release from social norms, therefore, is not simply alcoholically created. It is an entire experience that allows German individuals to be liberated from adult expectations and to enter an almost childlike, false historical world."
Abstract This research examines four epics from the Greco-Roman and Indiancultures: Homer's "Odyssey", Virgil's "Aeneid", "The Ramayana of Valmiki", and "The Mahabharata". The research discusses the degree to which these epics reflect the heroic context of a given society's past and/or its present concerns.
From the Paper "There appears to be fairly wide agreement among commentators on epic literature and cultural myths that certain consistent patterns of narrative action and treatments of human experience can be discerned across cultures. One is heroic activity in poems that deal with the history, actions, personal development, and destiny of one or more heroic figures. What these heroes do, what is done to them, and their ultimate destiny take on symbolic weight and become determinants of what is valued and distinctive in a culture."
Tags: odyssey, aeneid, ramayana, valmiki, mahabharata, virgil, homer
Abstract This seven-page undergraduate paper presents a complete review of the Cheyenne IndianCulture with respect to the prehistoric times and that of the modern times. Details about the language, political and social organizations are also described.
Abstract This paper looks at how classical Hinduism is a very inward-looking religion, trying to keep its footing in an outward-looking world. It contends that eventually it is inevitable that Hinduism may well undergo a transformation, just as the modern world is transforming Indianculture.
Outline:
What is Classical Hinduism?
Hinduism and Historical Place
Hinduism and Modern Times
How is the Practice of Hinduism Affected?
The "Invention" of Hinduism
Continuing Practices
Conclusion
From the Paper "Hindus believe that an external spiritual truth exists, called Brahman. Human life has a two-fold purpose: to understand Brahman and to come to an understanding about the role of the human soul, the atma (Prime 6). Given that the human understanding is imperfect, understanding the soul is a difficult, if not an impossible, task for a single lifetime. For this reason, the soul begins on a cycle of rebirth, samsara, in an effort to come closer to the perfect understanding of Brahman and achieve oneness with the eternal spiritual reality. The fuel that drives this journey is called karma, which either elevates us closer to that reality or pulls us farther from it, based on the actions of our current life (Prime 6-7)."
Abstract This paper explores the cultural accomplishments and legacy of the Mayan Empire. The paper demonstrates how their system of higher mathematics and geometry allowed them to build palaces, public buildings, athletic arenas, monuments, pyramids, pottery, jewelry and other various art forms, all without the benefits of modern technology. The paper also examines the archaeological evidence left behind by the Mayan Empire, discussing their creation of whole cities based on stone technology, as well as discovered artifacts that demonstrate the Mayan's culture and cleverness. The paper concludes with a discussion of the legacy of the Mayan Empire and the continuing Mayan cultural presence in Latin America today.
From the Paper "The Mayans kept time with a combination of several cycles that converged and marked the movement of the sun, the moon, and Venus. Archeologists believe the Mayans began to keep track of time on August 31, 3114 BC. The year 3114 BC is called the zero year and is comparable to January 1, 0000 AD. The Mayan calendar records time in 400 year cycles, which means that 13 cycles of 400 years will have passed before the next cycle begins on December 27, 2012 (1-0-0-0-0 in Mayan time). The Mayans realized there were cycles in the Cosmos. From this astronomical realization came instruments for reckoning time and a calendar that accurately measures the solar year to within minutes."
Abstract This paper uncovers the plight of the Native Americans at the hands of both the Spaniards of Mexico and the Anglo Americans. Douglas Monroy the author of "Thrown Among Strangers: The Making of Mexican Culture in Frontier California" seeks to demonstrate through exploration what he defines as labor relations policies in two distinctly different eras as portrayed in the book. This paper details why Monroy's portrayal of the Mexican invasion and its all-subsuming impact on indigenous Indianculture is often insightful albeit contradictory. This paper also discusses the author's insistence that the American domination was far worse than that imposed by the Spaniards.
Topics covered in this report include:
Introduction
Barbarian Strangers at the Gates
Conclusion
From the Paper "However, both share the primary reason for success: the imposition of systems upon the natives so alien and intrinsically unacceptable that they seemed literally to overwhelm their defeated victims. In the case of the Spaniards, this involved a complex interweaving of religion, family interrelations, sociocultural customs, historical/chronological self-image and economic concepts that diverged sharply from what the Indians could understand or assimilate. Later, the 19th century Americans also imposed a variety of new systems, but with a dramatic difference."
