Dances With Wolves Essay

Dances with Wolves Essays

Dances with Wolves

Lt. John Dunbar was lying on a hospital bed, leg totally mutilated. Barely conscious, the man over heard the surgeon say he could not amputate this mans leg as tired as he was. Dunbar didn't like what he heard, so when the surgeons left, he grabbed his boat, and he slowly slid the boat up his mutilated foot biting on a stick to relive the massive pain.

He returned to the battlefield, with only one thing on his mind, suicide. So, he took a horse, and rode it directly in front of the Confederate army.

He rode and rode, never getting hit by any bullet flying by him. The Union army then crushed the Confederate army and this maid Dunbar a war hero. He pled to the general to keep his leg, and he did....show more content...

One day, he was playing with the wolf and the Indians named him "Dances with Wolves".

Most of the men of the tribe sent out one day trying to make peace with another tribe. Dances with Wolves was assigned to watch the chief's family. While the men were gone, the tribe was attacked me other Indian's. Dances with wolves provided rifles to the Indians who were there and they defeated the other Indians.

Dances with Wolves and the lady he found that one–day were becoming very close. When the men returned, the chief told the lady (his daughter) she would mourn no more. She was in mourning because her late husband who was killed. Dances with Wolves and the lady ended up getting married.

The tribe was about to move to the woods for the winter. Dances with wolves had to go back to the post and get his journey he was writing everything in about him and the Indians, for if soldiers would find it, it would not be to good. He arrived back and the place was loaded with soldiers, and they shot at him like he was an Indian. He managed to survive, but he could not prove he was a Lt. In the army and was being arrested for treason.

While they were leaving, the tribe attacked, and rescued Dances with Wolves. He knew the army would be after him, so, he knew he had to leave the tribe, for when the army found him, they would kill the tribe also.

Dances with Wolves and his wife sent out in the woods, alone. 13 years later, Get more

With Wolves

Dances With Wolves

In his movie Dances With Wolves actor Kevin Costner tries to do away with any preconceived notions that the viewer might have had about the Native American Indians being a savage and inhuman race. He does this by first unraveling the mysteriousness of the Indians then he brings the viewer to a point of connectedness with the Indians and their culture. We then come to a sincere appreciation for them as human beings and individuals and find ourselves siding with them in matters of allegiance. This movie accomplishes this goal with several tactics and strategies. As the story unfolds we follow the life of John Dunbar (Kevin Costner) and take on his emotions and therefore come to the same realizations that he does....show more content...

We see that they are easily frightened at times like when Kicking Bird runs from the naked John who is also just as shocked by the Indians presence however does not want his horse, Sisco, to be messed with. We see through John's eyes how frustrating it is to not be able to communicate with other people and we understand how much trouble this has probably been for the Indians before. We see them as being generous people when John is presented with a Buffalo skin from them as well as their kindness in accepting his gifts. We also see how in John's eyes the Indians are developing personalities of their own as individuals and not just a group of people.

The second thing that must be done in order for the movie to completely change our opinion of these "savages" and bring our allegiances to them instead of the white settlers and army is that we must not only overcome our fears and prejudices we must also now connect with them in such a way that we feel bonded by friendship and love. The best way to accomplish this is through a feeling of belonging. As John becomes more and more involved with the Indians we see more and more of the personalities of the Indians themselves and we begin to see how human they really are. Now John begins to form friendships with these Indians and therefore so do we. One example of this is John's friendship with Kicking Bird. John and

Dances with Wolves

Dances With Wolves Chapter Summary, Chapter 1 The first chapter introduces the protagonist of the story, Lieutenant Dunbar, a soldier who is posted to the frontier. The time is during the American Civil War. Dunbar is at Fort Hays, but talks to Major Fambrough about being posted on the prairie. Major Fambrough, who appears as a little insane, agrees and sends him to Fort Sedgewick. He goes there with a peasant called Timmons. In the meantime, the same fort is being abandoned by Captain Cargill, who is waiting for a wagon with his eighteen out of an original fifty–eight man, while the others mostly deserted or are dead. Interpretation/stylistic devices subchapter 1 p.1, l.4 ``rolling ocean of grass'' is surely a metaphore, as grass can...show more content...

But Dunbar is not in all respects positive – sometimes he becomes a ``mindless, lethal machine that couldn't be turned off''. This somehow relativizes the view the reader might have of Lieutenant Dunbar as an ideal character. Timmon's death appears on the scene, which is probably foreshadowing his assasination by Pawnees in the next chapter. Dances With Wolves Chapter Summary, Chapter 4 Timmon's leaves the fort at sunset. Dunbar is not able to sleep at night because of the sounds of nature and doubts starting to arise, but in the end, he fights his doubts and falls asleep. In the meantime, six Pawnees are watching a fire – Timmon's fire – and debate whether they should attack, because they only had bad luck in their first attacks. When one warrior starts to ride towards the smoke, the others follow him, kill Timmon's violently, plunder his supplies and burn his wagon. Thus, a circle is closed: noone knows about the whereabouts of Lieutenant John J. Dunbar. Interpretation/stylistic devices ``Timmons pulled out at twilight''– twillight as the beginning of darkness, which itself represents evil and death – this is clearly foreshadowing Timmon's death. Interesting to notice is that Dunbar can not sleep because of the sounds of nature. This shows that he is not yet in harmony with nature. He also resists doubt and Get more content

Dances With Wolves Essay

Dances With Wolves

No matter how you choose to categorize human beings, whether by race or religion, nationality or gender, the resultant categories will display at least one immutable constant. Each group, no matter how diverse their beliefs or how dissimilar their behaviors, will contain men of honest and peaceful natures as well as men of divisive and violent natures. In the film Dances With Wolves, we are exposed to two distinct categories of people inhabiting post civil war America, the white man and the Native American. We, most likely, begin the movie with defined ideas as to which group contains honest, peaceful men and which group contains violent and savage men. We are, however, exposed to behaviors which are in opposition...show more content... But, compassionate, thinking white men are definitely in the minority in this film.

When John begins his Westward move, the crude, maniacal white man makes his reappearance. The officer who gives John the information about getting to his new post appears to be downright insane and apparently kills himself. The guide who accompanies John to his post is also no prize. John refers to him as "the foulest man alive"(Dances with Wolves). This constant exposure to the violent and crude men who make up the white race is an effective first step in shifting our sympathies. We want to distance ourselves from these shameful characters. We don't want to identify with them.

Our first exposure to Indians is a mere suggestion of the expected stereotype. We are shown a skeleton on the ground with an arrow stuck through it. So far so good. We are accustomed to that image. Dunbar's guide states that Indians are "nothin' but thieves and beggars" and that you only want to see them when they are dead (Dances with Wolves). He, of course, is such an exemplary man that it's not ironic at all to hear him degrading someone else.

From the beginning of the film we are given hints that Dunbar is not like his fellow "ugly Americans." When John and his guide arrive at the deserted Fort, the guide is in a hurry to be away. He is nervous and uncomfortable and thinks nothing of leaving without accomplishing what he was sent to do.

Who Is The Antagonist In Dancing With Wolves

1. The film Dancing with Wolves takes place in South Dakota in 1863. John Dunbar is the main character who hurts his leg in battle and is sent to the frontier on a new mission as a Lieutenant. When Dunbar arrives in South Dakota he is there alone, no one else had made their way their yet. Dunbar gradually starts to live with the Indians and become one of them getting the name Dancing with Wolves. Another main character is Standing with a Fist, who marries Dancing with Wolves. Standing with a Fist is an American who was captured but the Indians when was very young. She was used as an interrupted, but gradually fell in love with Dancing with Wolves. Another main character is Wind in his Hair. Wind in his Hair makes Dancing with Wolves...show more content...

The Indians look at this as sinful for they did not waste anything.

3. "Medicine" in Dancing with Wolves is a symbol of good character the way the character presents himself. The Sioux looked at JohnDunbar feeling everything through his "medicine" or his good gestures of sharing with the Indians.

4. The two main tribes are the Sioux and the Pawnee. The Pawnee tribe where more aggressive then the Sioux tribe. When fighting in battle the Pawnee Indians stripped down when they fight. The Pawnee Indians lived in lodges made of earth while the Sioux lived teepees. 5. There are many differences between the whites and natives. The Sioux Indians believed that there was no such thing as owner ship. They belied that no one owned the land that it was there to be used and they could use it as the pleased. The whites had a whole different prospective on this. They believed they owned the land. Which they eventually ran the Indians off the land they claimed was theirs to live on making the Indians leave their home lands. The Indians also believed in never wasting anything. They used every part of the buffalo not wasting any of it. The Sioux find buffalo that the white got to laying on the plains dead wasted. The whites had took what they wanted from it and left. Fighting was also a difference between the white and the natives. The Union while fighting in battle line up face to face with their enemies and shoot, Get more content