Topic > Analyzing Native American History Through Museum Artifacts

The museum I attended was the “National Museum of the American Indian” (The George Gustav Heye Center). This historic center offered a superlative perspective on the social heritage of Native Americans. There were displays featuring famous objects chosen for their aesthetic quality and power as emblems of native beliefs. My experience at this museum was very quiet and solitary, but I made the best of it. When I first entered the museum, I didn't know how I could connect the information to this class. It took me a while to understand how the information I had gathered could be relevant to this class. The concepts and theories I will use to analyze my museum visit involve race and ethnicity, commodification, domination theory, and hegemony. The authors I will use are Stephen Steinberg, Vine Deloria, Jr., Charles Fruehling Springwood, C Richard King, Harry Kitano, Nathan Glazer, and Ronald Takaki. In his article “The Ignominious Origins of Ethnic Pluralism in America,” Stephen Steinberg explores the history of American immigrants from the late 18th century to the early 20th century. This article touches on the point of settlement, which is when a group of people first settles on the land (Steinberg 6.) because of their different race, ethnicity, and religion. The Native Americans were driven out by the English, who were the first to settle. The early settlers had serious problems with power and control. Vine Deloria, Jr. also refers to agreements in his article “Laws and Treaties.” He states that the idea of ​​conquering Indian land was uttered by the Christian churches shortly after the doctrine of discovery was announced. Deloria states, “The discovery denied the rights of Indian tribes to sovereignty and… halfway through the document… this may show how Native Americans were mistreated by English settlers. With the help of the National Museum of the American Indian, I was able to understand more clearly how these specific concepts influenced Native Americans. While it was challenging to connect these concepts to the museum displays, I was able to understand how they could connect to what I have read and learned this semester. By analyzing what I learned in class with what I learned at the museum, this essay became less challenging. Native Americans have struggled throughout history and this struggle was caused by settlers and their control. The colonists did everything they could to downgrade the Native Americans. By going to this museum, I not only learned about the conflict between the settlers and the Native Americans, but I was able to fully understand how the Native Americans felt emotionally.