Indian films

Order Description

[PART I: TERM IDENTIFICATION – 6.25 points each]
Choose FOUR of the terms below. For each, you must write a short paragraph (at least five sentences) that draws on course readings and materials to (1) define and explain the term in your own words and (2) describe how the term is significant to our course this semester, including how it relates to other course concepts and materials.
(1) James Fenimore Cooper (5) The “Turner Thesis”
(2) Assimilation Policy (6) Manifest Destiny
(3) Buffalo Bill (7) Mise-en-scène
(4) Princess vs. Squaw Stereotype (8) Dawes Act

[PART II: SHORT ANSWER – 15 points each]
Choose THREE. For each short answer, write a well-developed paragraph that addresses all parts of the question or prompt.
(1) Identify and explain Kilpatrick’s three categories of American Indian stereotypes in Native American film and provide at least one specific filmic example of each.
(2) What is miscegenation? Identify and explain the racialized and gendered significance of miscegenation and how it connects to American nationalist mythology. Provide at least one detailed filmic example of the theme of miscegenation (aka the fear of miscegenation).
(3) Identify and explain how the “frontier” functions in the Classic Western genre and American nationalist mythology and identity.
(4) Identify and explain “The Malleable Metaphor.” Provide at least one specific filmic example of the theme of “The Malleable Metaphor” and explore its significance.

[PART III: ESSAY -30 points]
Choose ONE of the two prompts below. For each prompt, write a short essay of at least 500 words that addresses all parts of the question.
(1) What are the significant differences between a “classic” western and a revisionist western? What are key characteristics of each? What prompted the transformation of the genre? Please give specific examples from at least two films to strengthen and support your argument.
(2) Discuss the dichotomy between the Noble Savage and the Ignoble (or Bloodthirsty) Savage. What are the characteristics of these stereotypes? What is their function and how are they significant to the frontier myth and the nationalistic construction of American identity? Please provide detailed examples from at least two films to explore how Hollywood films perpetuate a romantic myth of American nationalism.

Reference Book is Celluloid Indians(Native Americans and film) written by Jacquelyn Kilpatrick