Analysis Of Ruth Cuthand's Trading Series By Ruth Cuthand

Over time, the power that Native women held with in their tribe has unfortunately digressed. During the age of exploration Native women have played key roles in the western fur trade. Native women assisted the fur traders by being liaison between the Europeans and Natives. This role was fundamental in strengthening trade increasing the economic stability of the post. They acted as guides for the European traders who often found themselves in dangerous and unfamiliar territory. Finally, they provided an intimate relationship for the European traders, and played a pragmatic role as a domesticated wife. However in order to fully understand the magnitude of the

From David Jones’ point of view, it is important to note that these epidemics were just some of the causes of population decline during European contact. Poverty, environmental stress, massacres, dislocation, malnutrition, and destruction of traditional subsistence patterns also changed the composition of many Native American groups. Eventually, these changes caused substantial depopulation and cultural change. Jones agrees that disease carried a decisive role; however, he argues that it is not the key factor in their depopulation. “Many factors contributed to American Indian susceptibility to Old World diseases, including lack of childhood exposure, malnutrition, and the social chaos generated by European colonization” (Jones 34).

However, the Native Americans didn’t just use these resources they garnered solely for food - they used the resources in several aspects of their lives, specifically for health. The Native Americans were dependant on the use of plants and other resources found in nature to use for curatives. Historians often attest that these curatives were far superior to the ones that Europeans used, and thus the span of life for Native Americans was often longer than that of the European people (The People). However, upon Native American and European contact, the Europeans introduced new, foreign diseases that were deadly because the Native Americans had never been exposed to these diseases, and thus did not have natural immunities to them. This was the same for other infectious diseases introduced to the Europeans, namely syphilis. Although, the amount of Europeans affected by syphilis was not even near the amount of Native Americans killed by some of the European diseases brought over in the Columbian exchange. Bartolomé de Las Casas commented on the epidemic of European viruses that killed thousands of Native Americans: “Who of those in

David S. Jones, from “Virgin Soils Revisited,” William & Mary Quarterly (October 2003), is of the opinion that although disease had its part, that poverty, malnutrition and environmental factors played a much larger role. Malnutrition was the gateway for disease to run rampant among native populations. Vitamin and nutrient deficiencies left people susceptible. Colonization brought deforestation contributing to climate changes, floods and droughts. Overgrazing by European livestock destroyed native crops, further driving a wedge between the settlers and the natives. Crop failures caused famines to many tribes that already had low subsistence levels. (Text p. 196-198) Tribes that lived in great numbers and in close quarters were also more susceptible to disease. "…, “even for contiguous Native groups,” depending on “population densities, transmission

Culture wasn’t the only thing that the Europeans brought over to the Americas. Along with their customs and rules, came the diseases that the Native American’s have never been exposed to. The Europeans brought many communicable diseases such as small pox and measles which were transmitted to the Native Americans through trade goods or someone infected with them. This quickly annihilated most of the Native American population.

The long history between Native American and Europeans are a strained and bloody one. For the time of Columbus’s subsequent visits to the new world, native culture has

The first effect of European and Native contact is the spread of diseases. Since the Native Americans had been isolated for centuries, they did not have immunity to European and eventually African diseases.

It is estimated that 60% to 90% of Native American tribes had died from new diseases brought from the Columbian Exchange from the Europeans. Numerous diseases such as the infamous smallpox were introduced to the Native Americans and were degrading to the population as the Europeans grew a type of immunity from the diseases unlike the Native Americans. Conflict between the Spanish and the Native Americans brought war which encourages diseases to spread through hand to hand combat. Cultures and tribes were on the brink of extinction, as European expansionism and imperialism succeeded in claiming land that was formerly the Native Americans. The mass genocide and epidemic of various diseases towards the Native Americans reach to new heights due to the Columbian Exchange as Europeans militants strived for land and gold at the cost of the Native American’s

The Columbian Exchange had a major effect on people residing in the United States. Disease was the number one cause of death amongst the other tragedies that came with the Columbian Exchange such as violence, culture, trade, and people that had followed Columbus. Many Native Americans died from diseases that were brought from Europe. The Europeans who had brought the diseases over did not seem to have done it intentionally. The Europeans were just in search of the New World. Native Americans lived free from the terrible diseases that destroyed populations in Asia, Europe, and Africa. Therefore, when Europeans came to America no one knew how to treat the diseases or how to handle them. Native Americans lacked the ability to fight off bacteria

Smallpox was the number one eradicator facing those who didn’t possess immunity to the rank disease. Over 90% of native peoples died from this illness. Spain constructed a system known as encomienda. Under this arrangement Indians could be traded to slave owners in exchange for the devotion of their Christian loyalty. The relationship between Indians and Spanish voyagers was not all horrific. They did

Second Slide: The ways in which Indigenous Women tried to resist, but were ultimately victims of colonization, and how heteropatriarchy has affected them.

Since the entry of Europeans, Native American individuals experienced an awesome misfortune in general the presentation of illnesses that was extended from Europe. They had never been presented to measles or little pox. The effect of these infections crushed tribes, wiping some out totally. Amid the exchange procedure, Europeans acted vindictively by exchanging covers that had been contaminated with little pox to clueless Indians. Researcher, Ann Ramenofsky noticed that, illness contact in the Americas has had its social results (Ramenofsky, 242) Similarly, the Pacific Coast individuals were constrained from their hereditary grounds to a reservation by the administration, after their tribe was essentially diminished from plagues. (Ruby, 185)

While horses and guns revolutionized warfare, trading for everyday goods greatly improved the life for the Native Americans. These items included new pots, beads, scissors, and hatchets. For example, the introduction of the scissors allowed the women to cut cloth more easily and precisely than before. Overall, everyday activities such as cooking and weaving were made much easier because of trade for European goods. The Native Americans frequently

As long as Europeans have settled America there has been a complicated history involving Native Americans and one of the most apparent places to observe this is through the use of art. There are numerous depictions of American Indians especially dating from the 19th century. At this time White Euro-Americans did not believe that Indigenous people could survive modernity and would be a dying race. This notion can be see through J. H. Sharp’s paintings. The depiction of the man in The War Bonnet Maker becomes problematic due to a superficial understanding of Native American Culture and Spirituality and makes them seem romanticizes.

Historically the treatment of Native Americans has been highly problematic, especially throughout the colonization of the New World. Although, when colonising some Europeans took a merciful and sympathetic approach to the Native Americans, generally the treatment towards the indigenous people was not humane. Not only did the Native Americans die at the hand of the settlers, they also died from diseases that had been brought to the new world by explorers for which they had no immunity. In some cases diseases such as smallpox wiped out entire tribes. Together, the introduction of diseases and the actions of the European settlers had devastating effects on the Native Americans.