Campus Units
World Languages and Cultures
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
2018
Journal or Book Title
Museum Anthropology Review
Volume
12
Issue
2
DOI
10.14434/mar.v12i2.22420
Abstract
This articles reflects on the process of creating digital media in collaboration with Native communities, using the example of Cheyenne Odyssey, a game from Mission US, to argue that such media can illuminate the perspectives of Indigenous peoples for a wide audience while also creating digital repositories for both visual and narrative forms of knowledge. This game takes on the difficult challenge of portraying very sensitive moments of US history to middle school-age children. The game walks the player through the Battle of Little Big Horn, the forced removal of the Northern Cheyenne people, their harrowing journey home again, and even the massacre of Dull Knife’s band at Fort Robinson. The creators of the game brought Cheyenne perspectives to the process by consulting Northern Cheyenne elders, historians, and even school children, as well as archival materials, and scholars of Cheyenne history, including the author. This multifaceted collaboration resulted in a game that presented Cheyenne history in a way that reflected Cheyenne values while providing non-Cheyenne people with an accessible narrative that, nevertheless, disrupts the familiar history of westward expansion in the United States. At the same time, the game makes new a history familiar to every Cheyenne by presenting it in a fresh medium that captivates young people. The public nature of this online game empowers Cheyenne people to take pride in their own historical narratives.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Copyright Owner
Indiana University
Copyright Date
2018
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Gish Hill, Christina, "Cheyenne Odyssey: Representing Removal in an Educational Video Game" (2018). World Languages and Cultures Publications. 162.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/language_pubs/162
Included in
Anthropology Commons, Digital Humanities Commons, Game Design Commons, Indigenous Studies Commons, Public History Commons, United States History Commons
Comments
This article is published as Hill, C.G., Cheyenne Odyssey: Representing Removal in an Educational Video Game. Museum Anthropology Review. 2018, 12(2); DOI: 10.14434/mar.v12i2.22420.