Little House on the Prairie - do you remember this? (long)

[Lisa Jo]

Background: I have been picking out some classic children's books to read to my 9 year old at bedtime. I am deliberately picking books he probably wouldn't read himself. When I chose Little House in the Big Woods followed by Little House on the Prairie, he groaned and said they were "girl books". He disliked them so much http://www.storknet.com/boards/wink.gif that last time we were at the library he excitedly ran up to me with the next book in the series. http://www.storknet.com/boards/smile.gif

Anyway, I am absolutely shocked at how the Indians are portrayed in these books. I read and loved each one as a girl, but I don't remember this. They are routinely referred to as savages, Ma is deathly afraid of them for no apparent reason, and the Ingalls' neighbor is fond of saying "the only good Indian is a dead Indian". http://www.storknet.com/boards/frown.gif

The Ingalls and their few neighbors breezily assume that the western territorities belong to the white people who show up to settle them. Reference is made to the government expediting the settlement process by using the army to move the Indians further west. In fact, at the end of the book Pa is livid because the government asks the settlers to leave their homesteads and move east. He had been expecting the army to come help clear the way for the settlers. It was really depressing, especially since Pa hadn't been at all negative about the Indians prior to that. http://www.storknet.com/boards/frown.gif I didn't want to edit as I read to my son, but I did stop and talk to him about how I felt.

When I mentioned this to my dad last week, he mentioned something he'd heard or read years ago about the Little House books. He said they were significantly changed from the way Laura Ingalls Wilder originally wrote them from her journals. Her original writings supposedly spoke of the cooperation between the Indians and settlers, but the revised version played up tensions between them and made the Indians out to be enemies. Has anyone heard of this?

I still like these books, but it's disturbing to encounter such blatant discrimination in popular children's books. It bothers me that I don't remember it from when I first read them....

Thoughts?

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Lisa
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[SusanH]

Wow, what a timely post! Just yesterday I was in the children's library and I thought about picking up the first Little House book because I've been wanting to re-read them. Then I decided not to, thinking perhaps I should just wait a few years until Susy is old enough to read them with me.

I adored these books as a child, but I don't remember them all that clearly. I definitely don't remember the portrayal of the Native Americans.

I don't know about your specific questions, but I do know that there was a controversial book written a few years back which suggested that Laura's daughter actually wrote the Little House books. I believe some other scholars suspect she heavily edited them, if not outright wrote them.

It is interesting what we remember from children's books, isn't it? When I re-read Little Women (another childhood fave) as an adult, I was amazed at the amount of heavy moralizing and religion. I read the book many times as a child, but found it terribly hard going as an adult.

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Susan, proud mama of Susanna Jane (http://users.adelphia.net/~harkavy/), 2/3/00 * at the park (http://users.adelphia.net/~harkavy/maypark.html) * "I sleepy!" (http://users.adelphia.net/~harkavy/sleepy.html)
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[H'OHara]

I loved the little house series, it was one of my favorites. I do know what you are talking about, as I have been reading them with my 9 year old dd, and to be honest, I don't think she picks up on the stuff. I think we, as adults, are more sensitive to it. I know that I have taught her not to judge people that way, and she doesn't.

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[Caryl]

I got out my set of Little House books when I found my Nancy Drew books, and I've been meaning to re-read the first one. Lisa, it's so strange, because I don't remember this at all either. I think I only got through ...in the Big Woods and then skipped ahead to On the Banks of Plum Creek, which I loved. I don't think I continued the series after that one, although I have the whole set. I could never get into Little House on the Prairie for some reason.

What your dad told you is so interesting. I haven't heard this, but I believe him. These stories are still so well-loved, and it amazes me that people aren't talking about this issue more. http://www.storknet.com/boards/frown.gif

Did you all watch the t.v. series as kids? I can't imagine Charles Ingalls (Michael Landon) acting this way. I'm glad they didn't stick too closely to the books! http://www.storknet.com/boards/wink.gif

Lisa, I think it's wonderful that you didn't edit the story for your son, but talked with him about it. What a great lesson, learning that we shouldn't take everything in print as "truth," that stories have biases & prejudices as well as the characters in stories. We need to share *all* of our country's history with our children, even the things we are ashamed of. (Perhaps that's the most important kind of history to share. "Never again" -- isn't that the motto they have posted in the holocaust's concentration camps now?)

Thanks for posting about this, Lisa.

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Caryl
Mom to Charon, 7/19/99
Co-Moderator for the Reading Circle and Heart of the Home Forums
"How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives."
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[Ursula]

I do remember that. I discussed it with my parents as I was reading them.

I wouldn't say that they had no reason to fear the Indians. The Indians were driven to extremes by the influx of the "white man" and The Ingalls personally knew people killed without direct provocation. Also, the Ingalls were forced to move off of their settled land because it was Indian territory. That really set them back big time.

I would say that the Indians had very good reasons for anything they did, but I would say too that pioneers were afraid of them because they might become the victims of things that they didn't do as individuals but were doing as a culture.

As to the word "savages," they were considered a primitive people and the word savage meant that to them.

I once read a book that said that Rose, Laura's daughter, actually doctored her mother's journals and wrote the books herself. There is a famous quote from Laura Ingalls in her old age where she tells her daughter in a letter something to the effect of, "Do any thing you want with the journals. Make stories up, embelish, do any **** thing you want."

I don't think anyone can really say for sure who wrote the books, but I do think they're interesting starting points for discussion with your child.

I was just reading Curious George. His "owner" wears Safari clothes and gives George a bike to ride in an animal show in celebration of the 3 year anniversary of him being brought back from the jungle. Now I know that George's Mother and probably other female chimps were murdered when George was poached from the jungle, but the story sure makes it sound like a good thing that he was brought out of the jungle to perform in animal shows. It's funny how your perspective changes as you get older. I've decided to put that book away until it's something my daughter is old enough to discuss fully.

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[HunnyBunny]

Hi Lisa -- you might want to read Undaunted Courage, by Stephen Ambrose. It's an account of the Lewis & Clark expedition through the American West in the early 1800s, and it includes very interesting details of the U.S. government's policy towards the various Indian tribes at the time. Amazing how much our forebearers took for granted ... I, for one, am certainly glad that times have changed.

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Laura (36)
DH Dave (41)
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[rebeccav]

Hi, I'm hopping out of lurker mode because this is a fascinating thread.

I loved the Little House books too when I was young, and also noticed the attitudes toward Native Americans when I re-read them as an adult. I think one reason we may not remember it is because Laura is portrayed as being more fascinated than fearful or hateful of the Natives. I find that now I am more interested in reading into the attitudes and feelings of Ma and Pa now that I have more of an adult perspective, rather than only being interested in Laura's side of the story as a child.

The last time I read the books, I remember being struck by a line that said something like 'Ma shuddered - she hated Indians.'

Great thread - interesting thoughts. http://www.storknet.com/boards/smile.gif

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[Jer]

I remember the scene in "Little HOuse on the Prairie" where the "Indian Braves" break into the Ingalls' cabin, one of them wearing a fresh skunk skin (which apparently showed how "savage" they were). Reading that as an adult, I was quite offended at the treatment of Native Americans. I suppose it might accurately reflect the white settlers' very ethnocentric, Eurocentric perspective.

BTW, my favorite book was always "Farmer Boy." I love the food descriptions!

http://www.storknet.com/boards/smile.gif http://www.storknet.com/boards/smile.gif http://www.storknet.com/boards/smile.gif

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Jer
proud mommy of Rhiannon Rachel, 12/6/99
and Gareth Benjamin, 7/20/02

[NicsMom]

I read them all as a kid, so I guess it's time to buy them and re-read them! I used to watch the t.v. series all the time, and I still watch the reruns LOL! http://www.storknet.com/boards/smile.gif

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[dbivens]

Here's a good website called the Definitive Laura Ingalls Wilder Pages (http://vvv.com/~jenslegg/index.htm) It's got lots of real history on her and even suggests that her daughter changed her manuscripts so that could be why. There's also a message board there too where you could post questions to other people who read and love those books.:)

[My Boy's Mom]

I am not sure whether Rose changed her mother's words or not, but we have to remember that life at that time was very different than it is today. We see things in a whole new light compared to what the pioneers saw, felt, heard, etc. The fact of the matter is, they did see the indians as savages and there were many conflicts between settlers and indians, many resulting in deaths for both sides. Since we have to assume that the books were taken from Laura's personal journals, we have to accept that this was the way she saw life. The TV based stories were very loosely based on the books and written in the 70's and later. I would guess that they have more fabricated material than the books.

I loved the books as a child and I am sure I would find them fascinating today, too, even if I did not agree with the veiws.
This has been an interesting discussion. Thanks for bringing it up. I think I will go dig out my set and start reading.