Weird Appropriation of Native Culture, Example 2,478
This is from a 1950s Batman comic book titled The Joker’s Comedy Of Errors. Click on the link to read the whole thing (which does not actually have much to do with Indians aside from the cover).
Not that this has anything to do with anything, but Batman went to Whitman and there is a tower in this issue that looks very much like the one that is part of the Whitman Memorial Building.
This appropriation is so much of its time that I just think of related examples from that era, like Scout totem poles (which is well exemplified on Country Homes, by the way) or the Seattle Totems logo ( http://www.seattlehockey.net/Seattle_Hockey_Homepage/Totems.html ).
It's not a very organized thought (yet) but this appropriation is so different from Buffalo Bill (in many ways) and yet again from our current appropriations of Native Culture. It'd be interesting to study how they've changed over time!
6 comments:
Not that this has anything to do with anything, but Batman went to Whitman and there is a tower in this issue that looks very much like the one that is part of the Whitman Memorial Building.
Michael, what do you mean by "Batman went to Whitman?"
I highly doubt Bruce Wayne went to school on the West Coast. Seems more like a Dartmouth man to me.
Adam West went to Whitman. His roommate was my 7th grade General Music teacher, Mr. Gurley.
Mr. Gurley also taught World History, but it was all rote memorization of famous names, memorable dates and places now called something else.
This appropriation is so much of its time that I just think of related examples from that era, like Scout totem poles (which is well exemplified on Country Homes, by the way) or the Seattle Totems logo ( http://www.seattlehockey.net/Seattle_Hockey_Homepage/Totems.html ).
It's not a very organized thought (yet) but this appropriation is so different from Buffalo Bill (in many ways) and yet again from our current appropriations of Native Culture. It'd be interesting to study how they've changed over time!
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