My Website: Buffalo Bill and the Girls

Here is the link for my website: http://sites.google.com/site/buffalobillandthegirls/

I hope you enjoy it!

My Website: Buffalo Gill and the Girls

This has been a difficult couple of weeks for me. I have not had enough time to devote to my class work as I would have liked due to a family illness that I needed to tend to. So, I am feeling like my website is just sort of thrown together. The time I would have been spending on it over the last two weeks has been spent driving to Columbus and back. However, I have put together what I hope will be an entertaining website for AMS205.

I have been pretty fascinated by how we are manipulated into seeing history in whatever way the government or media outlets want us to see it. This is true now, but was especially true before the advent of television, radio, and the Internet. For example, in AMS205, we have learned that the "Wild West" was not really as glamorous and beautiful as we have been led to believe. The actuality is that it was harsh, deadly, and that our ancestors took what they wanted from people who were only trying to protect what was theirs. I wanted to show that Buffalo Bill was marketed, and that his real story was just as interesting as his "his-story" of the Wild West. But when you remember Buffalo Bill, you are probably remembering the "story" and not his real story. I also wanted to show that while the American Girl dolls are probably a good investment for a child who likes dolls, all of the marketing and accessories could make a parent need to take on a part-time job just to pay for the stuff! I think that if American Girl dolls were real history, they would probably not need hairdressers and a different outfit for every day of the week!

So, my website is looking at history vs. "his-story". I chose to compare the reality and the fantasy of Buffalo Bill and of the doll line, American Girl Dolls. I know that seems a little weird, but I thought it was interesting to explore how Buffalo Bill was presented as "fact" to Americans, and how the dolls, which are based on historical characters, are presented to young girls as factual. What I've found out is that, as I expected, there is some truth to both Buffalo Bill and the dolls, but there are also many ways in which both are manufactured to sell an item to the public.

I really did enjoy this assignment, even though I don't feel like I devoted as much time to it as I would have liked to. I have never even considered developing a website before, and while I know that a Google website is not actually developing, it is good enough for me! There are some things that I didn't quite figure out as far as putting things where I wanted them and taking them out once I put them in the wrong place, but all in all, I learned a lot about using websites. I don't feel quite so bad about not being able to figure out a couple of things since I asked Librarian Kathleen to help me with a bread trail on my home page, and even she couldn't figure out how to get it out of there! We tried for a good while, but eventually gave up.

I think I was trying to market this website to parents of children (mainly girls) between the ages of 6 and 13. My goal is to make them aware of the fact that these are nice dolls for young girls, but that the books are a little superficial and don't exactly lean towards progressive when addressing women's issues. However, in fairness, I don't think that they could actually portray young girls in past historical settings and show an extremely left-wing young lady! At any rate, I wanted to show my audience that the dolls are part fantasy and part history, and should be presented as such. I used the legend of Buffalo Bill to show that history can be made to look one way when it was actually something else, so the books that go with the dolls should be used in conjunction with actual history readings.

“…THE ONLY INDIAN WHO SAW JIMI HENDRIX…”

It seemed a pretty natural selection for me to make for this blog. I was a teenager when Woodstock took place, I object to war, I’m a huge fan of music – especially from the 1960’s and 1970’s, and I’ve seen first hand the effects of alcoholism and broken families. Oh, yeah, and I also am ashamed of the way my government has treated American Indians.

I think the main theme of this chapter of The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven is how Victor and his father relate (or do not relate) to each other. While there are many themes in this chapter of the book, this is the one that seems to be threaded throughout. It is heartbreaking.

I found the themes in this chapter of the book to be interrelated, yet I really thought the way Alexie showed Victor’s father trying desperately to get away from traditional Indian values and Victor’s mother trying just as desperately to cling to and revive her traditional values most interesting. Alexie ties so many things together in this chapter and the entire book, it is almost hard to keep up with them, but I can easily pick out the father-son relationship.

It about broke my heart to read the passage where Victor is describing how he would wait for his father to get home at night so he could play “The Star Spangled Banner” for him while his father drank himself to sleep at the kitchen table. It reads “I would fall asleep under the table with my head near my father’s feet. We’d dream together until the sun came up.” It reminded me of my first husband and his father, and it made me very sad. I am so grateful that my children never had to live through that type of experience.

I find alcoholism such a destructive disease, and it certainly is evident in the Indian Nation. Alexie describes it so accurately in this book, and eloquently in this chapter. It is frustrating to know how hard the native Indians have been hit by this disease, and how little seems to be done to help them.

Another very poignant part of this chapter for me is the reference to war. I am very much against war (at least unnecessary wars) and thought it was interesting that Victor felt bad because he had not had a chance to fight in a war like his father had. His father’s reply, “…why the hell would you want to fight a war for this country? It’s been trying to kill Indians since the very beginning. Indians are pretty much born soldiers anyway. Don’t need a uniform to prove it.” I really think that this quote ties our class into this work of fiction. I am amazed at how much I have learned about the “Wild West”, and there is a small part of me that wishes I hadn’t learned it. Bad as it was/is, at least there is still time to try to make it better for our first Americans. I will start by knowing that my ancestors took this land from the Native Americans, and will learn more about what I can do to help them reclaim their traditions and dignity.

Jack and Bill Went Up the Hill...

Several years ago, my husband and I decided to watch Season 1 of the series “24”. I was fascinated by the concept of making each one-hour episode a part of one day in the life of Jack Bauer. We enjoyed the first three seasons, and found Jack’s ability to always get himself out of incredible fixes pretty amusing.

However, after a couple of seasons, it seemed that the torture and violence became more ingrained in the show, and my husband told me that he didn’t want to watch any more of the seasons on DVD because he objected to the torture portrayals.

I am embarrassed to admit that I didn’t really notice the increase in torture as the seasons rolled by on my DVD player. I was actually more annoyed by the ridiculous situations people (usually Jack’s daughter) got themselves into. However, once the increase in torture was pointed out, I knew what he meant and agreed with my husband that Jack would never darken our door again.

I stopped watching the show, but admit that occasionally I wouldn’t mind watching it to see what Jack’s up to these days. I’m betting it’s still the same ol’ violence, torture, and bad attitude…

After reading the assigned articles this week, and after reading a few more online, I have a little more insight into this show. I can see that Jack Bauer could be compared to the cowboys of the Wild West, and that the “terrorists” could be compared to the Indians. Cowboys vs. Indians. Jack vs. Osama. Hmmm…

I think it is a stretch to compare Jack Bauer to Buffalo Bill though. While Buffalo Bill was a hero in the true sense of the word (or not actually so true), Jack Bauer is depicted as a guy who does whatever it takes to get the job done, and has absolutely no problem with doing illegal acts to accomplish the task. My impression is that Buffalo Bill would be the hero in white, and Jack would be the hero in black, sneaking around in dark alleys watching Buffalo Bill’s back, hacking off a finger or hand here and there. I heard Jack even got into the vampire craze by biting someone’s neck. Seriously??? Jack might be Buffalo Bill's scary cousin down in the basement playing with the Indian head that Bill chopped off. Come to think of it, perhaps they are more alike than I thought!

I think a lot of people love to watch Jack’s escapades because he is almost superhuman. He is the epitome of right, and routinely exterminates the evildoers. He will “do whatever it takes” to protect his country and the people in it. Who wouldn’t want to be his best friend? Well, I guess I wouldn’t want to be. I value my kneecaps waaayy to much...

I think 9/11 scared a whole lot of people. I think that Jack represents what many people want in a leader – someone who breaks the rules and doesn’t care who gets hurt along the way. Strong, one-minded George (oops – I meant Jack!)

I am a very liberal minded person, and I am completely outraged by some of the information that was reported about the Bush administration’s torture tactics. I believe that this can only be bad for the United States and worry about the young men and women who fight for us now and in the future. If they are captured, they will have no chance. It’s like all bets have been called off and there are no longer any rules. I worry about my grandchildren, especially my grandson, and what it will be like for them in fifteen or twenty years. I don’t like the way it looks - perhaps Jack will still be around to protect them.