Dance
Nothing has done more to perpetuate liberal myths about the Plains Indians than Kevin Costner's Dances With Wolves, the beautifully done and ever politically correct film that was the Academy Awards 1991 "Best Picture". The historical inaccuracies of this film were so gross as to be amusing. (My wife hates to go to films like this with me; I either gripe about the propaganda or giggle at its silliness.) My favorite was the scene where the old medicine man asked Kevin Costner why he was going to start a family so soon instead of waiting. "Sure!", I told my wife, "I bet they have a Planned Parenthood set up in one of those tepees!" The Indians not only lacked modern birth control technology, but, because of continual warfare, the uncertainties of their nomadic lifestyle, and the dangers of buffalo hunting, faced the serious threat of underpopulation. Hence their willingness to steal and adopt outsiders. Added to show the enlightened nature and progressive spirit of the Indians, this ridiculous scene only demonstrates the director's desire to manufacture a politically correct film. That desire is repeatedly shown in the film's representation
In one sense, Hollywood gets even with Dances With Wolves. For decades movies cast Indians as savages and buffoons, without much character, personality, or diversity, while whites generally appeared as the 'good guys'. Now, that is reversed. Every once in a while, a less-than-noble Indian appears, to give the film psychological depth and try to maintain credibility, but on the whole they are seen as a positive force, whereas whites are invariably the villains. For a different perspective on the Sioux Indians romanticized in Costner's film, see Francis Parkman's The Oregon Trail. Parkman, one of the great American historians of the 19th century, wrote a fascinating journal while living with the tribe in the 1840s. Though the politically correct despise him because he is critical of the tribe's militaristic spirit and lack of responsibility and discipline, Parkman is a perceptive observer, a superb writer, and an excellent foil for modern, PC treatments of the Indians. This 'getting even', however, though understandable, is dangerous since it is driven by a general hostility to Western culture. One critic suggested that in "Dances With Wol
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 774
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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