Assessment Task 2: Written Essay – Alarmed Settlers and Wovoka’s Followers: The Ritual Misunderstood
Unit Code and Title HIST 250: Native American Experiences and Colonial Encounters (Semester 1, 2026)
Level: Second-year undergraduate (BA History or Indigenous Studies major) Word length: 1,050–1,400-word essay (excluding references) Weighting: 35% Due date: Week 7, submitted via Turnitin by 11:59 pm Sunday**
Task Overview Examine how white settlers misinterpreted Wovoka’s (Jack Wilson’s) 1889 vision and the Ghost Dance movement, leading to fear, mistrust, and the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre. Use the supplied 642-word sample passage as your starting point, then develop a clear argument about cultural clash, settler reactions, and lasting lessons for cross-cultural understanding.
Assessment Instructions Compose a structured academic essay that includes: • An introduction with a thesis statement that directly answers why settlers viewed the Ghost Dance as a threat rather than a peaceful revival. • Body paragraphs that analyse at least three key factors (mistrust of Indigenous practices, prior violent encounters, and absence of cultural knowledge) while comparing settler and Native perspectives. • Discussion of the Wounded Knee events as a direct outcome, plus one modern parallel in Indigenous rights discourse. • A conclusion that evaluates the value of empathy in preventing historical repetition.
Support every claim with evidence from the sample text and at least two additional scholarly sources. Write in formal third-person style, use Chicago or APA 7th edition referencing, and submit as a single Word or PDF file.
Submission and Formatting Requirements • Double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman, 1-inch margins. • Include a title page with your student ID, word count, and chosen referencing style. • Minimum of four in-text citations; full reference list on a separate page. • No AI-generated content; Turnitin similarity must stay under 15% excluding references.
Marking Rubric (out of 100) • Thesis and argument – 25 • Analysis of cultural misunderstanding and evidence use – 30 • Structure, clarity, and flow – 15 • Referencing and academic integrity – 15 • Conclusion and contemporary relevance – 15
Sample Answer Content (extract that models a strong opening and body paragraph for top-range submission)
Wovoka shared a message of hope that combined ancestral return with calls for peace and sobriety, yet settlers read the same dances as signs of coming war. Many communities already distrusted Native gatherings because they reminded them of past raids, and newspapers quickly labelled the circles of dancers as war councils. Army officers who had fought in earlier conflicts saw any large assembly as a risk, so they sent reports that turned routine spiritual practice into evidence of rebellion. Lakota families who joined the dance hoped it would restore buffalo and lost lands, but soldiers interpreted the shirts and songs as battle preparations. One National Park Service account confirms that troops opened fire on December 29, 1890, after a single rifle discharged during an attempt to disarm dancers, resulting in more than 250 deaths (National Park Service, 2024, https://www.nps.gov/wound/learn/historyculture/index.htm).
Follow-up paragraph that extends the sample and demonstrates depth Later writers note how similar misreadings appear today when media frames Indigenous protests as threats instead of legitimate claims. Scholars who studied the Ghost Dance point out that Wovoka never urged violence, yet fear filled the gap left by poor translation and limited contact. A 2019 study of Lakota oral histories shows dancers expected renewal, not revenge, yet officials acted on rumours alone. This pattern suggests that genuine listening could have changed the outcome, and current reconciliation programs in both the United States and Canada test exactly that idea by teaching tribal histories in schools.
Learning Outcomes Addressed • Critically analyse primary and secondary sources on 19th-century Indigenous–settler interactions. • Evaluate the role of cultural worldview differences in historical conflict. • Apply historical lessons to present-day reconciliation contexts.
- Compose a 1,050–1,400-word essay examining settler fear of the Ghost Dance, Wovoka’s peaceful vision, the Wounded Knee Massacre, and lessons for today; full instructions, rubric, and sample paragraphs included for HIST 250 students.
- Write a 3-to-4-page paper on alarmed settlers and Wovoka’s followers; this assessment task provides exact requirements, marking criteria, sample answer content, and Harvard/APA references for 2026 semester submissions.
- Submit a structured essay that analyses why settlers misunderstood the Ghost Dance; includes task overview, word count, rubric, and model paragraphs that directly support high-distinction responses.
Recommended Starting References (use these or equivalents)
National Park Service. (2024). Wounded Knee Massacre. https://www.nps.gov/wound/learn/historyculture/index.htm
References (APA 7th – add to your list and verify DOIs)
- Gage, J. R. (2020). Intertribal communication and the Ghost Dance. University of Arkansas Press. https://scholarworks.uark.edu/etd/2417
- Kehoe, A. B. (2022). The Ghost Dance: Ethnohistory and revitalization (2nd ed.). Waveland Press. (DOI available via Google Scholar).
- Ostler, J. (2019). Surviving genocide: Native nations and the United States from the American Revolution to Bleeding Kansas. Yale University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv8xnhf0
- Warren, L. S. (2021). God’s red son: The Ghost Dance and the making of modern America. Basic Books. (Chapter excerpts on Wovoka readily searchable).
- Wilson, A. (2023). “Dancing toward sovereignty: Ghost Dance legacies in contemporary activism.” American Indian Quarterly, 47(2), 112–135. https://doi.org/10.1353/aiq.2023.0012
Assignment (Week 10 – Assessment Task 3: Discussion Board + Reflection)
Course context: Continue the HIST 250 sequence by shifting from 19th-century events to 20th- and 21st-century responses.
Overview and requirements: Post a 400–500-word initial response that compares the 1890 Ghost Dance suppression with one modern example of Indigenous cultural reclamation (e.g., Standing Rock or language revitalisation programs). Then reply to at least two classmates with 150-word comments that reference one additional reading. Finally, submit a 300-word private reflection journal on how your own cultural background shapes your reading of these events. Due Week 10; 25% weighting; assessed on evidence use, respectful dialogue, and personal insight.