White Man's Answer Toan Indian Problem example essay topic

In the novel Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko, we see how Tayo (the main character) a half breed being half Indian and half White appreciates and accepts his Indians roots more than the full breed Indians that have gone tothe war as well as his Aunt. It is ironic how a person like Tayo is not accepted by either cultures, but at the same time he wants to be a part of his Indian culture while people like his cousin Rocky, his aunt, and the other Indian veterans want to be a part of what they believe is a "superior" culture, the white culture. Due to Tayo not being accepted by either culture he is as well forced to isolate himself specially from The Indian culture and is unable to deal with his emotions and problems that he was faced with because no one, such as his aunt handmade it evident since his youth that he was not part of the family and therefore must learn by himself how to deal with his problems. Since Tayo was born he was looked down upon just because of the mere fact that his mother slept with white men. Ever since he was young and lived with his mother's family members, his aunt made sure that he realize that for her as well as the other Indians he will always be looked at as an outsider even amongst his own family members. It was a private understanding between the two of them.

When Josiah or old Grandma or Robert was there, the agreement was suspended, and she pretended to treat him the same as she treated Rocky, but they both knew it was only temporary... She was careful that Rocky did not share these things with Tayo, that they kept a distance between themselves and him. But she would not let Tayo go outside or play in another room alone. She wanted him close enough to feel excluded... (67) This however did not affect the relationship between his cousin Rocky who he learned to love as a brother and his uncle Josiah and his Grandma.

The only person who saw Tayo as a disgrace to the family was his aunt and she felt that because of this now she had to work harder to show the rest of the community that she was a good aunt and that she had to deal with much suffering... The reasons behind why she feels ashamed of her sister and her nephew is rather ironic however... She feels ashamed because her sister was with a white man and had a white man's child, but at the same time she wants her son Rocky to be part of that White society that she has looked down upon in Tayo. Rocky, who is a full breed Indian, does not believe in and is ashamed of his culture. He sees his culture as old fashion and superstitious. He believes inthe white man's answers to the questions that life brings up.

He turns to the sciences and a white man's logic to find answers to his questions and looks down upon Medicine Men like Ku " oosh who are very wise and have the answers that he is looking for. Those books are written by scientist. They know everything there is to know about beef cattle. That's the trouble with the way the people around here have always done things-they never knew what they were doing". (76) The only one that can be blamed for this is Tayo's aunt. She has always wanted her son to succeed in the white man's society and if it meant forgetting about your culture then that should be the way.

She wanted him to be a success. She could see what white people wanted in an Indian, and she believed this way was his only chance. She saw it as her only chance too, after all the village gossip about their family. When Rocky was a success, no one would dare to say anything against them anymore. (51) The aunt did not understand what it was that she was actually a curing by letting her son forget about his own culture and embrace a culture in which he does not belong to. Even if he did embrace that culture and would live amongst thewhite people, he would have never been looked as a part of their society, butts an outcast like Tayo.

These, however, were not the only people that thought the same way. The Indian men who Tayo and Rocky fought along with in the war also had somewhat of the same thinking pattern. While they were U.S. Marines in their uniforms they were given respect. However, the respect that they were given, was not because they were Indians who were wearing uniforms, but because they were soldiers and therefore they were the same as any other White man fighting in the same war.

The were saluted and thought of as brave and when they went to bars or to the stores they were given respect and they were looked upon as soldiers fighting the "White" man's war. "White women never looked a tme until I put on that uniform, and then by God I was a U.S. Marine and they came crowding around... " (40) That was everything that they have ever wanted from these white people. The truth hit them when they returned from the war and they were once again treated as Indians. Soldiers like Emo and Harley bought into that fake ideal world that the white people were putting in front of them.

In reality though, the white people did not care for making these Indians a part of them. What they cared about was the fact that these were people that were buying intothe re "fighting for their country" slogans". 'Anyone can fight for America,' he began, giving special emphasis to 'America,' 'even you boys in a time of need, anyone can fight for her. ' " (64) It was very subtle, but what this quote comes right down and says is the fact that when these white people need help, then everyone is part of "America" and everyone is equal. People like Rocky, Harley, and Emo played into this because they saw it as way to be like the white people that had power... Even though they always fought and argued about how thewhite man took away their land and how the white man pushed them away from what was rightfully theirs, they go ahead and fight for what is conveniently now their country as well.

Once they returned and the war was over, the White society again treated them as before, never once acknowledging that those men went and fought in the war and died like a white man for their sacred White " America". I'm half-breed. I'll be the first to say it. I'll speak for both sides.

First time you walked down the street in Gallup or Albuquerque, you knew. Don't lie. You knew right away. The war was over, the uniform was gone. All of a sudden that man at the store makes you wait until all the white people bought what they wanted. And the white lady at the bus depot, she's real careful now not to touch your hand when she counts out your change.

You watch it slide across the counter at you, and you know Goddamn it! You stupid sonofabitches! You know! (42) The only person in the war that did not play into the white man " 's lies was Tayo. He did not know who he was and how to deal with all the problems that he was surrounded by, but what he did know was that there had to be a way out of feeling the way he did. And the only was that this was going to take place was if he stop keeping all his fears and angers in his stomach and start to realize that there is an easier and a better way to handle them. since Tayo was never able to fully relate to either one of his roots he felt that he had to keep to himself and endure all the pain.

Every time that Tayo had those pains inh is belly they were caused because of bad memories or when he would hear the other Indian talk about either his childhood or his experience in the war. He could not help put transfer all his grief and pain to his belly. He shivered because all the facts, all the reasons made no difference any more; he could hear Rocky's words, and he could follow the logic of what Rocky said, but he could not feel anything except a swelling in his belly. (9) He was not able to deal with all the pain that the war caused him and therefore when returning back home he was put in a mental hospital, because they thought that it would be the best for him. The only explanation that they had forTayo's condition was that it was battle fatigue, again, the white man's answer toan Indian problem. The only way that Tayo, could feel some what better was by vomiting every time that he would feel that pain in his belly.

"The swelling was pushing against his throat, and he leaned against the brick wall and vomited intothe big garbage can". (18) What we are seeing here is that by him constantly vomiting it is a way for him to get rid of all his pain and suffering. Tayo thinks tha the actually is vomiting all the pain out of his system because he believes that heh as consolidated all in one place. His belly and that all that he has to do isempty it out.

He does not understand that he can not solve his problems like that. the only way that he will be able to get rid of all the pain and suffering is by facing it and dealing with it. this is something that he does do and that it takes into account Tayo being accepted as an Indian which at the end of the novel is what has happened. Ku " oosh has been able to help Tayo because what he needed all along was an Indian cure. Not a medical white cure for an Indian problem, such as Tayo's that can only be cured amongst themselves. What this novel has done is brought out what racism and how it affects everyone. The sad thing about it though is that this is racism amongst same culture and worst of all amongst family members.

We have to remember not to play into the white man's world because the only thing that it is doing id dividing a beautiful culture that has a right to spread and be free from ignorance. All of us are equal, but yet we still think that we are better then others and until we think otherwise we will continue to breakup cultures that have as much right to stay strong as ours. WORK CITED Marmon Silko, Leslie. Ceremony. New York: The Viking Press 1977.