포카혼타스 이야기들을 통해서 본 인종과 젠더

Abstract

This is a study of Pocahontas nanratives which incIude the historical analyses, populal' novels and film. English writers have given several different accounts of the same native American, Pocahontas for 400 years. The various stories of Pocahootas have reflected the Americans' perception of race and gender. Pocahontas did oot leave the record. It was the Englishmen who wrote about the Pocahootas when she was alive. From the beginning, the documents about Pocahontas exhibit the White men's perspectives rather than her thoughts and intentions. Beíng taken prisoner by Englishmen, Pocahontas herself was used to the advantage of Englishmen. After her death, she became famous for her rescue of Captain John Smith, the reality of which has been in doubt among the scholars. in the West frontier, Pocahontas naltatives gave the courage and confidence to the people who were ín fear ofthe natives. 1n the míddle of the 19th century the South used the Pocahontas narrativle and Jamestown history to claim the or less and legitimacy of American history against the Massachusetts Pilgrims. From the latter half of the 20th century, multicullturalism and feminísm influence the narratives. Disney's animation film Pocahontas reflects more or less the public discourses on race, gender and environment. But the film neglects the historical fact that Pocahontas was captured by Englishmen to be a prisoner for a long tíme. To overcome the White mens ethnocentrism, ít ís necessary for American society to acknowledge the European Americansvíolent and barbarous history. Not a myth but the hístory of Pocahontas could be the way to face it.