Shifting Views on Native Americans in the Film, Dances With Wolves :: Movie Film Essays

Shifting Views on Native Americans in the Film, Dances With Wolves A wounded soldier lay on an operation table. The scene is surely not that unusual. 150 years ago, the medical field dealt with gangrene and infections by amputating any wounded limb. Now John Dunbar finds himself in almost the same situation. On a stroke of luck, as it would turn out, the doctor feels to tired to complete the operation on Dunbar and decides to finish for the day before taking his leg off. In the moments that followed, a frustrated, confused and disillusioned Dunbar pulls his boots back on and stumbles back onto the battle field. Feeling like there is nothing left to live for, Dunbar mounts a horse and charges the stagnant enemy line, bringing the battle to full fledged combat. Though his original intent I feel was not to start the battle, but rather to end his life, he becomes a hero, seeing that he wasn't shot or wounded. His cowardly actions in a twist of fate, ironically landed him as a decorated soldier. Due to his position, Dunbar was given the option to go where ever he wanted. This was a customary option for war hero's of his time. Being the romantic type, as depicted in the film, he requested to be sent out west to become a US marshal. He felt a calling to see the Old West before it was gone. Upon his assigning to his post, it was understood that he was an Indian hunter. So, he was sent to a completely unmanned post in the west. Here is confronting with an interesting sequencing of events that would eternally change his life. The American Indians, in the eyes of virtually everyone moving west, were considered the enemy. I didn't get the impression that Dunbar or his traveling counterpart felt any differently as they the stopped and carefully and with concern, inspected a human skeleton with arrows in it. I also couldn't help but feel some comradery with them. Moments later, a band of Indians notice a cloud of smoke rising in the distance. We see the paint and the scowls on their faces. They look like everything I've ever thought to be Indian. Savage, heartless, rough, mean and having no concept of rational. And sure enough, as the film would lead me to believe, the horrid Indian descends into the plains to find a white traveler cooking a meal.