Indian School: Stories of Survival
1.
The film falls under the awareness/social concern category. The documentary clearly brings about the social injustices that the Native Americans underwent in the hands of the white Americans. It acts as an awareness to people of the racial segregation that was practiced.
2.
Oppression is a theme that can be clearly depicted from the film. The Indians who were unwilling to take their children to school were detained unlawfully in the Alcatraz. They were referred to as the murderers looking Indians.
Racial superiority. The whites believed that they were racially superior to the Native Americans. Therefore, they had to impose their culture to the Native Americans forcefully. This is evident in the documentary where the Native Americans had no say in whatever was being to their children in the boarding schools.
Hatred. There was hatred against the Native Americans. It is with this fact that the white Americans practiced discrimination against them.
3.
When one reads the title for the first time, it is easier to know what the content of the documentary is. The title is therefore relevant to the themes since it mirrors them.
4.
The filmmaker hopes to bring out some sense of empathy for the Native Americans or any other group of individuals going through the same problem. The filmmaker intended to educate the society about the social injustices and discrimination that existed during the time of our fore-fathers. He does this by using the characters who underwent discrimination during that time.
5.
It is clear that the filmmaker was against the practices against the Native Americans. The filmmaker took this stance because a rational human being would take this practice as inhumane. I definitely stand by the filmmaker because what the Native Americans were going through was wrong.
6.
Through the visuals employed, the filmmaker was trying to emphasis the facts of discrimination. One can easily relate the narrations by the characters and the visuals hence ensuring that they are convinced about the altercations the Native Americans faced.
The visuals that have been greatly used in the film include images of the Native American children being trained as bakers, scene of a mother carrying her child on the back and segments of the imprisoned Native Americans who had refrained their children from going to school.
7.
The filmmaker uses narration, background sounds, and music to drive across the message. These devices makes the film believable.
8.
The filmmaker employs the use of eye witnesses. From the documentary, we are able to notice that some of the eye witnesses become emotional while narrating the story.
There has also been extensive use of diaries and journals. These documents solidifies the true nature of the happenings that took place. The film would have been meaningless if these sources had not been used.
9.
The film reminds the Americans of the discrimination that took place during their history. Additionally, this reminds them of the consequences of such practices if at all this practice is effected.
10.
The messages portrayed in the film have been brought out clearly. Through the sources used, the message has been driven home.
