The movie title Smoke Signals brings to mind the old Westerns
that many of us grew up on. From those two words alone we imagine lone tumbleweed
rolling through an arid desert.
As it bounces along, it comes across a cowboy camp. The weed
continues on its merry way, but the camera remains fixed on the group: strong
working men doing what strong working men do, pursuing the American dream while
preserving some justice on the side. Then, over their unsuspecting shoulders,
we see an ominous haze appearing in the distance. The haze hardens into what
appears to be a small party made of man, horse, feather, and red war paint. The
ensuing course of events is bloody. But, as usual, the cowboys come away as the
heroic victors, civilizing the wild desert, one death at a time. Or... am I the
only one getting this image.. Regardless, it is clear that the title of the
movie is meant to invoke an old-west interpretation of the Native American
culture. What the viewer really gets, however, is something wholly different. Smoke
Signals is a movie that expertly sows the past, the present, lies, truths, critique,
and humor into an authentic depiction of what it is to be Native American in
the modern world.
It does so by weaving together all
the aforementioned elements into a narrative told by a Native American man,
Thomas Builds-the-Fire. Thomas loves to tell stories. He seems to embrace the stereotypical
role of an eccentric, truth-seeking Indian shaman. Interestingly enough,
though, most of the stories he tells inside the narrative seem to be untrue. “Thomas,
you’re so full of shit,” said Victor, after hearing him relay a heroic tale about
Arnold Joseph during the Vietnam War. Supposedly, while wondering how to
separate himself from American hippies Arnold beat a national guard private during
a protest, made headlines because of it, and ended up going to the jail for the
plead down ruling of “being an Indian in the 20th century.” It is
important to note that in the photo that the journalist took, barely noticeable,
was another protestor's sign: “Make love, not war,” it read. This story, although
fictitious, had meaning behind it. It helped the viewer understand that the
Indians want, above all, to be independent from the United States. It was their
land first, after all. That is, until some white-skinned pretenders assumed
themselves as the true inhabitants of this country. Similar to how, in the story,
the hippies parroted Indians, the original freethinkers. In response, Thomas explained,
Arnold separates himself by being violent. The “red peace symbols splashed
across [Arnold’s] face like war paint”, as well as the sign behind him further intensify
the intended contrariness. However, their paradox made the message clearer. He
is suggesting that the need for freedom from oppression may soon overpower any
intention for peace. So, as it turns out, this seemingly quirky tale was more
an omen or warning. After Thomas finishes the story, Thelma and Louise exclaim,
“…It is a fine example of Oral Tradition.” Indeed, it is. Storytelling, in the
Indian culture is not always about literal truths. The listener is supposed to
make their own judgment regarding the veracity of a statement (For more
information on the Oral Tradition of the Native Americans you can read through http://digital.library.okstate.edu/encyclopedia/entries/o/or002.html).
As one can see, it is important to
note that, to Thomas, the stories he tells are not necessarily lies. When Suzie
Song asked Thomas if he wants a truthful story or a false one, he replies
simply, “I want both.” He clearly believes that truth can be found behind any
veil of lies. It is at this point that I realized what Thomas hoped to
accomplish with his tall tales: As is clear in the movie, and in Thomas’ accounts,
Native Americans are fixed on the concept of deceit. It was, after all, an
everyday part of life since Columbus first landed; from the first settlers’ treaties(https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/boundless-open-textbook/the-expansion-and-crises-of-the-colonies-1650-1750/the-growth-of-the-colonies/settlers-and-native-americans/),
to the Trail of Tears provoked by President Andrew Jackson(https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/boundless-open-textbook/the-federalist-era-1789-1801/political-conflicts-in-the-west-east-and-south/in-the-west-the-native-americans/),
and leading up to their contemporary struggle for civil rights (https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/the-sixties-1960-1969/the-expansion-of-the-civil-rights-movement/native-american-rights/).
One example of this concept found in the movie is Arnold’s preoccupation with “magic.”
Magic is a fabrication, a deception. Arnold seemed to want all of his troubles
to simply vanish. So, he “poofed” them all away, at first ridding himself of the
whites, the drunks, the Catholics, and even the reservation. Later on, he
“poofed” himself from his family and personal problems. Last, while talking to
Suzie, he “poofed” away the Jesuits victory, both in history and in the
basketball game. He did most of this with his favorite wand, a bottle of
alcohol; this is a favorite for those who use illusionary coping device, for it
is centered on deceit of one’s self. Arnold used it to cover up the past and
the resulting reality of today. Thomas, on the other hand, used deceit in a
different sense. His form of fabrication
was his stories, and they were used to bring out the truth, not to hide it. All
of them had deeper meanings, going beyond or perhaps more accurately, before the
present day reality, each having firm roots in the past. For instance, the
story he told Suzie Song about the holiday feast at the reservation, when
Arlene cooked only 50 pieces of fry bread for 100 Indians. The tribe was alarmed.
What could they possibly do? But, Arlene had a “genius” solution. She would
split each piece of bread into two, and everyone would get a share. I believe
that this was a biting social criticism of the way that the white man handled
the occupation of America. There was so much free land back then, enough for
everyone to live on their own terms. Yet the settlers thought otherwise. Thomas’
allegory demonstrated the weakness in that line of thought. Share everything
equally, and everyone will be happy.
I believe that these two
interpretations of the past and the present, lies and the truth, are integral
to the message of the movie. The best point of reference for their implication
can be measured by Victor. He grew up under Arnold’s spell. As a result, he was
mistrustful and confused. When he met people from outside the reservation he
was suspicious of their words, always choosing to accuse them of falsehood.
This was not only true of “the white (wo)man” such as the gymnast. He proved to
be distrustful of his own kind as well, for example, when he accused Suzie Song
of not really knowing his father. He was also confused about his identity. The
lesson he taught Thomas on being an Indian showed that. Although he accused him
of basing his actions on movies about Indians, his explanation of proper
behavior was just as modeled on those same movies: “Indians ain’t supposed to
smile like that, get stoic…you gotta look mean or white people won’t respect you…you
gotta look like you just came back from hunting buffalo.” Thomas pointed out
that their kind never hunted buffalo, that they were fishermen. Clearly Victor
was molding his behavior around something other than reality. He had been
fooled by Arnold into thinking that the world was a place where deception won.
Luckily, over the course of the journey, Thomas was able to show him a
different way. He showed him a world in which deception was used to find the
truth. By the end of the story Victor saw through the hazy mirage that was his
father. In the last scene Thomas asked Victor if he knew why his dad really
left. Victor answered, “Yeh. He didn’t mean to.” Another ambiguous statement,
but in this one, Victor found truth.
