Musician, writer, and entertainer Bobby Bridger, a descendant of the well-known western trapper and scout Jim Bridger, has written a book attempting to link the past to the present by connecting historical eras of the American western movement with how Native Americans have been viewed, not only at the time, but in modern writing, especially fiction, stage productions, and, most importantly, motion pictures. His thesis is apparently based on a sentiment expressed by Indigenous author Joseph Marshall III at a Western Writers of America Conference to the effect that, although Indians have walked in the white world, whites have not walked in the Native world. His inspiration is also drawn from John Neihardt\u27s classic Black Elk Speaks, Dee Brown\u27s Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, as well as the works of Vine and Philip Deloria

Monnett, John H.

English

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University of Nebraska - Lincoln
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Great Plains Quarterly Great Plains Studies, Center for
Fall 2012
Review of Where the Tall Grass Grows: Becoming
Indigenous and the Mythological Legacy of the
American West by Bobby Bridger
John H. Monnett
Metropolitan State College of Denver
Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsquarterly
Part of the American Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, and the United States
History Commons
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Great Plains Studies, Center for at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It
has been accepted for inclusion in Great Plains Quarterly by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln.
Monnett, John H., "Review of Where the Tall Grass Grows: Becoming Indigenous and the Mythological Legacy of the American West by
Bobby Bridger" (2012). Great Plains Quarterly. 2831.
http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsquarterly/2831
296 GREAT PLAINS QUARTERLY, FALL 2012 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Where the Tall Grass Grows: Becoming Indigenous 
and the Mythological Legacy of the American West. 
By Bobby Bridger. Golden, co: Fulcrum Press, 
2011. vii + 408 pp. Notes, index. $29.95 paper. 
Musician, writer, and entertainer Bobby 
Bridger, a descendant of the well-known 
western trapper and scout Jim Bridger, has 
written a book attempting to link the past 
to the present by connecting historical eras 
of the American western movement with 
how Native Americans have been viewed, 
not only at the time, but in modern writing, 
especially fiction, stage productions, and, 
most importantly, motion pictures. His thesis 
is apparently based on a sentiment expressed 
by Indigenous author Joseph Marshall III at 
a Western Writers of America Conference to 
the effect that, although Indians have walked 
in the white world, whites have not walked in 
the Native world. His inspiration is also drawn 
from John Neihardt's classic Black Elk Speaks, 
Dee Brown's Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, 
as well as the works of Vine and Philip Deloria. 
Bridger argues that no one of non-Indian 
descent can fully understand the mystical, psy-
chological, and historical dimensions of Native 
America unless they have completed the circle 
of universe and life as explained by the Oglala 
Lakota holy man Black Elk. Bridger believes 
that few non-Indians have walked that path 
and therefore cannot claim Indigenousness to 
the Americas. The thesis is nothing new and 
does not take into account myriads of people 
of mixed ancestry and their roles in western 
history, moving for centuries in both white 
and Native worlds and often keeping those 
worlds functional. Bridger admirably explores 
all stages of western American expansion, tap-
ping how Indians were stereotyped during each 
era and how those stereotypes are perpetuated 
or are changing for the better in providing 
an Indigenous voice in modern literature and 
media. 
Readers will appreciate Bridger's perceptive 
personal experience in realizing and convey-
ing these important messages, especially in 
literature. His historical examples remain 
another story both in fact and interpretation. 
His chapter on white female captivity, for 
example, is particularly weak in linking eastern 
colonial captivity with practices and realities 
in the West. Bridger attempts to ascribe the 
highly controversial "Stockholm Syndrome" to 
explain female captives' attachments to their 
captors. There are very few examples of this in 
the West. Bridger uses the often quoted case of 
Cynthia Ann Parker's capture by Comanches 
in Texas in 1836. She married and loved a 
Comanche husband, gave birth to Quanah 
Parker, resisted rejoining white relatives, and 
remained culturally Comanche. Bridger fails to 
examine that Parker was only nine at the time 
of her capture, making the bulk of her child-
hood years of acculturation Comanche. Bridger 
then links the story to The Searchers, the popu-
lar 1956 movie that dealt with adults, while 
spending far too much time rambling about the 
acting career of John Wayne and other movie 
stars, along with his first-hand experiences with 
authors and actors. Wayne's tryst with Marlene 
Dietrich has nothing to do with Bridger's his-
torical comparisons to modern entertainment, 
comparisons that often fail to support his 
intent of linking past to present. 
General readers will find that Bridger's 
book entertains and presents some insight into 
themes with which they may not be familiar. 
But serious scholars may find much of the book 
lacking. 
JOHN H. MONNETT 
Department of History 
Metropolitan State University of Denver 
© 2012 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 


Review of \u3ci\u3eWhere the Tall Grass Grows: Becoming Indigenous and the Mythological Legacy of the American West\u3c/i\u3e by Bobby Bridger

DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska

University of Nebraska - LincolnDigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - LincolnGreat Plains Quarterly Great Plains Studies, Center forFall 2012Review of Where the Tall Grass Grows: BecomingIndigenous and the Mythological Legacy of theAmerican West by Bobby BridgerJohn H. MonnettMetropolitan State College of DenverFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsquarterlyPart of the American Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, and the United StatesHistory CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Great Plains Studies, Center for at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Ithas been accepted for inclusion in Great Plains Quarterly by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln.Monnett, John H., "Review of Where the Tall Grass Grows: Becoming Indigenous and the Mythological Legacy of the American West byBobby Bridger" (2012). Great Plains Quarterly. 2831.http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/greatplainsquarterly/2831296 GREAT PLAINS QUARTERLY, FALL 2012       Where the Tall Grass Grows: Becoming Indigenous and the Mythological Legacy of the American West. By Bobby Bridger. Golden, co: Fulcrum Press, 2011. vii + 408 pp. Notes, index. $29.95 paper. Musician, writer, and entertainer Bobby Bridger, a descendant of the well-known western trapper and scout Jim Bridger, has written a book attempting to link the past to the present by connecting historical eras of the American western movement with how Native Americans have been viewed, not only at the time, but in modern writing, especially fiction, stage productions, and, most importantly, motion pictures. His thesis is apparently based on a sentiment expressed by Indigenous author Joseph Marshall III at a Western Writers of America Conference to the effect that, although Indians have walked in the white world, whites have not walked in the Native world. His inspiration is also drawn from John Neihardt's classic Black Elk Speaks, Dee Brown's Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, as well as the works of Vine and Philip Deloria. Bridger argues that no one of non-Indian descent can fully understand the mystical, psy-chological, and historical dimensions of Native America unless they have completed the circle of universe and life as explained by the Oglala Lakota holy man Black Elk. Bridger believes that few non-Indians have walked that path and therefore cannot claim Indigenousness to the Americas. The thesis is nothing new and does not take into account myriads of people of mixed ancestry and their roles in western history, moving for centuries in both white and Native worlds and often keeping those worlds functional. Bridger admirably explores all stages of western American expansion, tap-ping how Indians were stereotyped during each era and how those stereotypes are perpetuated or are changing for the better in providing an Indigenous voice in modern literature and media. Readers will appreciate Bridger's perceptive personal experience in realizing and convey-ing these important messages, especially in literature. His historical examples remain another story both in fact and interpretation. His chapter on white female captivity, for example, is particularly weak in linking eastern colonial captivity with practices and realities in the West. Bridger attempts to ascribe the highly controversial "Stockholm Syndrome" to explain female captives' attachments to their captors. There are very few examples of this in the West. Bridger uses the often quoted case of Cynthia Ann Parker's capture by Comanches in Texas in 1836. She married and loved a Comanche husband, gave birth to Quanah Parker, resisted rejoining white relatives, and remained culturally Comanche. Bridger fails to examine that Parker was only nine at the time of her capture, making the bulk of her child-hood years of acculturation Comanche. Bridger then links the story to The Searchers, the popu-lar 1956 movie that dealt with adults, while spending far too much time rambling about the acting career of John Wayne and other movie stars, along with his first-hand experiences with authors and actors. Wayne's tryst with Marlene Dietrich has nothing to do with Bridger's his-torical comparisons to modern entertainment, comparisons that often fail to support his intent of linking past to present. General readers will find that Bridger's book entertains and presents some insight into themes with which they may not be familiar. But serious scholars may find much of the book lacking. JOHN H. MONNETT Department of History Metropolitan State University of Denver © 2012 Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln 

https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3826&amp;context=greatplainsquarterly

Review of \u3ci\u3eWhere the Tall Grass Grows: Becoming Indigenous and the Mythological Legacy of the American West\u3c/i\u3e by Bobby Bridger

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