American Indian Studies Courses. This course is an introduction to the content areas of the American Indian studies curriculum, including an overview of American Indian history, American Indian literature, federal Indian policy, land issues, reservation and urban issues, cross-cultural influences, art, music, and language. This course examines a variety of issues concerning the biological, evolutionary, and historical origins of women's roles and status in society. Comparative roles of women are examined in tribal contexts across various indigenous cultures. Studies include the role of women in Native American and African tribes, peasant societies of eastern Europe, Mexico, the Middle East, and China.
Emphasis is on such current issues as tribal sovereignty, treaty rights, and education.
The tension of cultural change and religious, traditional persistence among selected American Indian tribes today is highlighted. INS 264 American Indians in the Cinema Various images of the North American Indian, created by Hollywood and television, are studied. Films from 1913 to the present are viewed in order to provide an understanding of how American Indians were portrayed in film historically, how this image has evolved over the past century, and how it is reflective of Western cultural ideologies. The focus is on the roles played by women in the tribal cultures of North America. It explores the continuity of women's roles over time, as well as changes in these roles, precipitated by the influence of Western colonialism.