Rez Life: An Indian’s Journey Through Reservation Life

Why do you think Treuer tells the story of reservation life in the United States through a handful of individuals? What impact does this have on the reader? Why do you think he selected these particular individuals to tell this story?

Rez Life precedes Treuer’s more comprehensive history of Indigenous American life, The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee. Treuer’s goal with both books was to revise the historiography of Indigenous peoples from one that explored tragic narratives to one that elucidated the complexities of life within Indigenous communities, which are common to all communities. What common themes and issues does he explore in both books? How do both books contribute to the study of Indigenous American history?

How are the issues of Indigenous people’s sovereignty and treaty rights connected to Enlightenment philosopher John Locke’s idea of private property? Locke believed that people deserved to own any land on which they had labored. How does Locke’s idea, which has been regarded as a key concept in the development of the American colonies, contrast with white Americans’ treatment of Indigenous people and other non-white people throughout the nation’s history?