Shifting Views on Native Americans in the Film, Dances With Wolves :: Movie Film Essays

Shifting Views on Native Americans in the Film, Dances With Wolves A wounded soldier lay on an exploit table. The scene is surely not that unusual. 150 years ago, the medical field dealt with gangrene and infections by amputating any wounded limb. Now John Dunbar finds himself in close the same situation. On a stroke of luck, as it would turn out, the doctor feels to tired to complete the operation on Dunbar and decides to finish for the day before fetching his leg off. In the moments that followed, a frustrated, confused and disillusioned Dunbar pulls his boots back on and stumbles back onto the battle field. Feeling like there is nothing left to active for, Dunbar mounts a horse and charges the stagnant enemy line, bringing the battle to full fledged combat. Though his original intent I feel was not to pass away the battle, save rather to end his life, he becomes a hero, seeing that he wasnt shot or wounded. His cowardly actions in a twist of fate, ironically arrive him as a decorated soldier. Due to his position, Dunbar was given the option to go where ever he wanted. This was a customary option for war heros of his time. Being the wild-eyed type, as depicted in the film, he requested to be sent out west to become a US marshal. He felt a calling to see the Old West before it was gone. Upon his assigning to his spot, it was understood that he was an Indian hunter. So, he was sent to a completely unmanned post in the west. Here is confronting with an interesting sequencing of events that would eternally change his life. The American Indians, in the eyes of virtually everyone moving west, were considered the enemy. I didnt get the impression that Dunbar or his change of location counterpart felt any differently as they the stopped and carefully and with concern, inspected a human skeleton with arrows in it. I also couldnt help but feel some comradery with them. Moments later, a band of Indians notice a cloud of smoke rising in the distance. We see th e paint and the scowls on their faces. They impression like everything Ive ever thought to be Indian. Savage, heartless, rough, mean and having no concept of rational. And sure enough, as the film would lead me to believe, the horrid Indian descends into the plains to find a white traveler cooking a meal.