Life Among The Piutes

Mikaila Garfinkel
English 48B
January 21, 2009
Journal #5 Sarah Winnemucca

"So he separated his children by a word. He said 'Depart from each other, you cruel children;-go across the mighty ocean and do not seek each other's lives.'"

Sarah Winnemucca originally stated this quote in a speech, in which she is explaining the the story of how White people, and "Indians" were once a family, but were split up by God long ago. It is the subtle aspects of the parts of the story, such as this quote, that make it so powerful. The first line "so he separated his children by a word", shows how easily two groups can separate themselves from one another, despite every race sharing the same species. While a word may not actually separate two groups of people, a since action, such as a war, has the power to do so. Referring to his children as "cruel", Gods role in the story acts as the father, and the idea that two different types of people can't get along is almost "childish". They are both his children, which means they are related and share similarities. Dismissing these similarities, and "shared blood" is what makes them cruel. The last part of the quote "go across the mighty ocean" enhances the idea of how far apart the "siblings" have become. The ocean referred to as mighty, gives off the idea that to cross it would be a difficult task. When the Whites crossed the mighty ocean, the fact that they automatically are killing the Native Americans show the cruelty of them, for they go on a long, hard journey, to come start a war.

Sarah's purpose for the story is not just mere entertainment. The speech was addressed to Whites, in hopes of gaining their sympathy, or at the very least, their understanding. While it was a convenience that the story happened to fit chronologically with the rest of her stories, it was also an impressive strategic move on her part. She wanted the Whites that were robbing her people of their rights to understand that the Paiutes were peacefully people, and that it was them that started the violence between them. Her Grandfather even said to the Paiutes "now, the white people we saw a few days ago must certainly be our white brothers, and I want to welcome them. I want to love them as I love all of you." Winnemucca including this story was not only to guilt the whites, but to show how they were all a family at one point in time, well, at least according to the Paiutes. Everybody is related. True, families fight. But families do not slay each other (with few exceptions), and that is the message Sarah wanted to get across. It was pointless to make such a long journey, and gain not nearly as much that could have been gained if there had not been a war between them. Maybe there was a reason God separated them in the first place, because one groups cruelty will conflict with another group, even if their intentions are morally good. She wanted to convey that the Paiutes were peaceful people, and that they deserved the rights that they initially had in their own, separate life.