Chief Seattle's Speech: Summary and Context

Chief Seattle's Speech: Summary and Context

Context

Chief Seattle (1780-1866) was a prominent leader of the Native American Suquamish tribe. He was well-known for his courage and wisdom, and his commitment to preserve the ecology of tribal lands. His power gradually diminished when white settlers began invading Native American territories. However, Chief Seattle maintained friendly relations with the settlers for the security of his tribe. The city of Seattle in the state of Washington, USA, has been named after him.

History remembers Chief Seattle for a stirring speech he is believed to have delivered in 1854, at a meeting called to

discuss the US government's proposal to buy the Suquamish tribe's land. Chief Seattle had spoken in his native language, and Henry Smith, a young doctor, had made notes at the time. Smith's translation of the speech was published more than thirty years later. While the essence of the actual speech may have been lost in translation, it is immensely powerful. It conveys the Native Americans' deep respect for their land and the environment,

and their anguish at having to give up their land. It also tells us how widely different two cultures can be.

Summary

Here is a summary of Chief Seattle's Speech.

Chief Seattle begins his speech by assuring the Great Chief in Washington (the US President) that his words are reliable.The sky may change, but his words are like the sun or the seasons that arrive without fail. He then acknowledges. that the offer made to his tribe is kind. The white settlers far outnumber his tribe members, and do not really require the tribe's friendship or co-operation. He also notes that the offer to buy the tribe's land in exchange for a reservation - that is, an area set aside exclusively for them - is wise. With their dwindling numbers, the tribe no longer requires vast lands.

Chief Seattle then reminisces regretfully about a time when his people were everywhere. This is now only a painful memory. He asserts that he will not blame the white settlers alone for the premature decline of his tribe. They themselves are responsible for it, too, as the native youth reacted impulsively and violently to the white settlers' invasion. Chief Seattle hopes that hostilities between his tribes' people and the white settlers will never return. After all, war brings nothing but grief.

The Chief then states that now that the government in Washington will protect his people, the natives will consider themselves the children of the chief in Washington. But he wonders if true harmony between the Native Americans and the white settlers would ever be possible. He stresses how the white man's God can never be their God, as this God merely stood by and watched them get decimated.

He also emphasises that they are two culturally different races and goes on to highlight a few differences. First, the Native Americans consider the resting place of their dead ancestors to be sacred, while the white settlers seem to have no reservations about leaving the land of their ancestors. Their religious traditions are also vastly different. The Native Americans' traditions and teachings are handed down from generation to generation by word of mouth.. In contrast, the white settlers' religious teachings are written down in a holy book. Further, the Native Americans' dead ancestors continue to love the world that gave them life and return to it. Contrarily, in the white man's belief system, a person who dies cuts all ties with the world.

Given these differences, it is clear that the two races cannot live in harmony. Therefore, the offer to set up a reservation for the Native Americans seems fair. He is certain that their days are numbered. But he also accepts this as the law of nature. Someday, he says, the white settlers too will meet a similar fate.

Chief Seattle then points out that should they decide to accept the US government's offer, they must be allowed to visit native burial grounds at any time without fear of attack. Every inch of the land, right from the soil to the hills, holds memories for his people and is sacred for them. So much so, the land would respond more lovingly to the natives' touch than to the settlers'. He warns the authorities in a veiled manner that should they disrespect Native American culture, even the dead will rise against the injustice.

Chief Seattle ends by saying there is no such thing as death; there is merely a change of worlds.