Charles Alexander Eastman’s autobiographic work, From the Deep Woods to Civilization throws light on the unfair experiences of a Native Indian American youth living in the early 20th century United States. Through this work, Eastman intended to inform the world about the intensity of a Native American’s tension associated with his struggle to cope up with the European culture. The book indeed was an eye opener for many in the context of European stereotypes about Native Americans. It approached the US history from a Native American’s perspective. Eastman found himself “a stranger in a strange country” many a time over the course of his life in the so called civilized modern society. To be specific, Eastman’s cultural bond with the Native Americans and loyalty to the government collide in his effort to reconcile being both an Indian and an American, and thus he found himself ‘a stranger in a strange country’.
Being a Native American scholar, Eastman never rejected his own culture; instead he perceived history through the lens of a Sioux way of life. He documented Sioux culture, giving higher attention to incidents related to cultural integration. The book was not a mere description of facts and chronology, but it reflected a Native American’s agony and confusion with regard to cultural assimilation. The work remains to be a showcase of Native American culture, mythology, spirituality, and moral perceptions. According to him, this could be the experience of any Native American youth who had to forget the comfort of his tribe and family for the sake of assimilation. In other words, being an Indian American involved pain and confusion, and all these could be attributed to the process of colonization.
Eastman’s life at the Santee Indian School, Beloit College in Wisconsin, and later at Knox College in Illinois had a profound impact on his outlook, for his exposure to the new cultural universe was something that he could not comprehend at all. One among several factors, language was the most potential barrier to his goal pursuit. The strange Language (English) coupled with other socio-economic and cultural factors constituted a literarily strange world for him. Neither his practice as a physician, nor later careers of a writer and public speaker gave him confidence. Although he stood for Native Americans, he was criticized for his assimilative tendencies. On the flip side, he lived in a White predominant society when at the same time confronted challenges associated with identifying his role and dignity.
Since his childhood, Eastman witnessed traumatic episodes of colonization and underwent expulsion. He was converted to Christianity for no reason, for he had been happy with his innate spiritual experiences, “Great Mystery”. Evidently, he maintained both beliefs in an attempt to reconcile being both an Indian and an American. “Eastman reconciled his political inclusion in the political structure of the United States by presenting himself as a case study to gain the support of white activists and as a model ripe for emulation by Indian people”. Obviously, the new religious environment also contributed to his ‘strange world’ experience.
Eastman was convinced of the cultural competence of his land, which could be attributed to their tradition, struggles, spirituality, and love for nature. Their culture had the potential to vie with the mainstream societies of the world. Their religion, characterized with numerous practices, ceremonies, and traditions was worth following. From the narration, it is clear that the Native Americans had been peace loving people. They had the ability to survive any potential threats. However, their inability to get united had been their major impediment to sustainability, which Eastman indented to resolve. However, his strategy of cultural assimilation caused his cultural identity loss. According to some scholars, Eastman wanted to transform Native males from their savage state’ into self-relied citizens through intense assimilation strategies, for he believed that assimilation would help the natives to resist white domination.
As one understands from his book, he was well trained “to adapt himself perfectly to natural things”; and he had to practice self control, silence, and maintaining harmony with the nature. As he stated, he confronted his tribal foes with sportsman spirit, and destroying a nation was not an agenda in tribal politics. This was the state of mind from which he had a shift to learn hating betrayers. He was informed that he should not believe everyone, should earn money, should be cautious about pickpocket, and many more- all which collectively formed the new ‘strange world’.
Eastman represented the indigenous people of the United States who lived in the region peacefully until the arrival of Europeans in the 15th century. Even today, Native Americans are a marginalized segment of the society in the US in terms of education, employment, and healthcare. Obviously, their resources and funds have been mismanaged by the US governments. The Native Americans’ poverty rate is growing alarmingly high. All these indicate that the current socio economic situations in the United States can offer only a ‘strange country’ for the Native Americans.
In total, Eastman’s cultural tie with the Native Americans got disintegrated by cultural assimilation and reconciliation. He did not affirm his loyalty to the government nor had he actively encouraged any tribal upheaval. The result was that he was torn severely between assimilation and tribal heritage. Undoubtedly, he had every reason to be ‘a stranger in a strange country’.
Bibliography
Bayers, Peter L. “Charles Alexander Eastman’s From the Deep Woods to Civilization and the Shaping of Native Manhood”. Studies in American Indian Literatures 2008. 20 (3): 52-73.
Eastman, Charles Alexander. From the Deep Woods to Civilization. US: Courier Corporation, 2003.
Peralta, Katherine. “Native Americans Left Behind in the Economic Recovery”. US News. Nov. 27, 2014. [Accessed 16 Feb 2016]. http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/11/27/native-americans-left-behind-in-the-economic-recovery
Vigil, Kiara M. Indigenous Intellectuals. US: Cambridge University Press, 2015.
