“’Indians’: Textualism, Morality, and the Problem of History”, an essay written by Jane Tompkins, a professor of English at Duke University, outlines Tompkins dissatisfaction on how American Indians are portrayed throughout history. As children, we are taught that in “1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue”, and that Peter Minuet bought all of Manhattan Island from the Indians for only twenty-four dollars worth of trinkets. In high school, we were taught that in World War II, the …showed first 75 words of 717 total…

…showed last 75 words of 717 total…in the works of Miller and Vaughan. The first major problem is found in Miller’s essay. Miller’s own point of view and his own experiences cloud his portrayal of history. The second major problem is found in Vaughan’s book. For the most part, Vaughan remained unbiased, however Vaughan’s account was inaccurate. Inaccuracy and biased points of reference are the two major problems that Tompkins finds are detrimental to truthful historical accounts.