This poem is definitely unique and different from a poem I am used to reading. The first thing about it that stands out to me is the way that it relays a story through a narration, rather than the classical “rhyme pattern” based poems. More specifically, the author begins the poem in a strange but yet intriguing manner, where she is basically reflecting on the way she wrote the poem, not even diving into the actual content of it. However, beyond the structure of the actual poem, the topic on which the author is referring to is also very interesting. With her very unique style of composing a poem, Layli Long Soldier is able to both inform the reader with details about an event that occurred in the the United States’ history, and also captures the readers attention by adding suspense when she reveals that the act is actually looked over in American history. Strong states that president Abraham Lincoln was responsible for the hanging of 38 Dakota natives and also signing the emancipation proclamation in the same week, yet only the signing is what receives attention. From this, she continues on to explain that in fact the mass execution was actually caused by a rebellion brought upon by the Sioux who were getting exiled from their land little by little by turbid American contracts. She clearly uses this poem to demonstrate the harsh actions of the United States towards the Natives.
Additionally, Strong uses the quote ” everything is in the language we use”. This quote is not only significant in the way that she uses specific language to inflict a certain mood towards the reader, but also within the poem she includes sentences that are a mere reflection of the meaning of this quote. for example, regarding to the use of language to inflict a mood, Strong states ” the Dakota people starved” and then adds that there is no need to emphasize “starve” because in reality the people of the Sioux were actually starving to death. Here, it is evident that Strong purposely uses very specific and detailed language to imply a mood of sorrow or remorse towards the natives by the reader. Furthermore, when Strong is referring to Andrew Myrick and his comment telling the natives to “eat grass” she completely embodies the meaning of the quote ” everything is in the language we use” in her writing. When she states that the natives executed Myrick and filled his mouth with grass, she calls it irony and later adds that the words “eat grass” put the poems gears into click, demonstrating literally how the language she used through out the poem reflect one of the main points within the story she was relaying.
The emphasis on specific words was very effective in relaying her emotions onto the readers. It would force us to think twice about what she said and have that information fully process in our minds. She understands that readers can sometimes brush over some information but she made sure we didn’t miss what was most important.