The irony behind Junior's family's celebration of Thanksgiving is that they were Indian. Yes, the holiday originally started out as a happy time for the Pilgrims and Indians. But then the tables turned and an all out war was launched between both groups. The Indian tribes were nearly wiped out from war and mainly disease. Wouldn't looking back at this holiday bring nothing but pain back to the indians in remembrance of their ancestors?
Junior noticed this and made his point on page 101. "I always think it's funny when Indians Thanksgiving. I mean, sure, the Indians and Pilgrims were best friends during the first Thanksgiving, but a few years later, the Pilgrims were shooting the Indians." So why would they celebrate a holiday with such a dark meaning to their ancestry? Junior asks his father on page 102. ""Hey, Dad," I said. "What do Indians have to be thankful for?" " Catching his father in a rare sober moment, his response was "We should give thanks that they didn't kill all of us." This was probably intended as a joke because they all laughed afterwards though it is not an unwise philosophy. Like the woman in the TED talk video, this family prefers to ignore the negatives that have happened in the past, and reflect upon a happier meaning. Yes, it seems ironic that Indians would celebrate Thanksgiving, though the actual first one was a happy time. Here, they are looking at that moment of thankfulness and happiness as opposed to the dark future that came swiftly afterwards.
If you were Indian, (Native American), would you celebrate Thanksgiving? Why or why not?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI think that your question, would you or would you not celebrate Thanksgiving, is a hard question to answer, if you are not Indian. I really do not know what I would feel if I was indian. I don't know what my emotions towards the situation would be. However, if I were to make a choice, I think that I would celebrate Thanksgiving because it is a time when both groups of people worked together and it was overall, a better time.
ReplyDelete