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Discussion of Black Elk Speaks Essay

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Discussion of Black Elk Speaks Black Elk was a holy man of the Oglala band of the Lakota Sioux nation. Black Elk interpreted his life as a holy man as "the story of a mighty vision" (BES, p. 2). As a child, Black Elk was blessed with a great vision from the other world. In receiving his great vision, Black Elk received a great power, a "power to make over" (BES, p. 201), a power to make things better for sick and suffering individuals and nations. He did not know it at the time, but this vision would be the blueprint of his life. It would guide him through times when he doubted his importance to his people. He had other visions, but they all tied into the great vision he experienced as a child. Black Elk made incredible …show more content…

These Grandfathers presented Black Elk with gifts to help him on his journey. A wooden cup, a bow and arrows, a white wing of cleansing, an herb to heal, a sacred pipe a flowering stick and the power to make live and to destroy were the tools that were given to him. Then, the Grandfathers showed Black Elk what was to become of his people. He was shown a holy tree which once had been flowering and was now gone. The people he was supposed to lead were thin and starving, and Black Elk cried as he saw the fate of his people. Once he was placed back in the world of his family he was enlightened yet confused. He was unable to do anything with the powers he was given until he was older. As he came to be a man, he was blessed with a gift of helping people. He worked curing illnesses until he felt it was time that his life should take another turn. In 1883, the last of the bison herds were killed. Black Elk could not understand why the Wasichus would kill animals without using everything it had to offer. That year Black Elk said, "All our people now were settling down in square gray houses, scattered here and there across this hungry land, and around them the Wasichus had drawn a line to keep them in. The nation's hoop was broken, and there was no center any longer for the flowering tree. The people were in despair.” (BES, p. 213-214) In 1886, as part of a show, Black Elk traveled to London to study the Wasichus and their way of life. By studying

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