Instructions:
Read the instructions and questions carefully before you start writing. Number your responses clearly and indicate which questions your answers refer to. Leave sufficient space between your answers. Do not repeat yourself in your answers to different questions. If the same information appears in different answers, I will evaluate it only once. This exam consists of an essay section (40%) and an identification section (60%). Your answer in the essay section counts for 40% of the mark. Each of your six answers in the identification section counts for 10% of the mark. This exam constitutes 25% of the total course grade.
Submit the exam as one single MS-Word file on Nexus, in the folder titled Final Exam. Before you submit your exam, make sure that all of your essay- and short identifications are included in the file that you are submitting. The file can only be submitted once. Multiple submissions are not permitted.
You must answer your exam questions yourself and may not collaborate with others in answering any exam questions.
Part A: Essay Section – Answer one (1) of the following essay questions, showing your knowledge of the issues, events, and main parties involved in the topic at hand. Your essay answer should be between five and six typed pages, double-spaced, 12 pt. font, Times New Roman.
1. How has hydroelectric development on the northern Plains, especially along the Missouri River, affected Indigenous communities? What were the reasons behind this type of energy development? Discuss examples from at least two communities/Reservations.
2. In the early 1800s, the three groups of the Blackfoot-speaking peoples interacted with US-American and Montreal-based traders, as well as the Hudsons Bay Company. Discuss and compare the approaches and motivations of the Pikani (Piegan/Peigan), Siksika (Blackfoot) and the Kainah (Blood) in their dealings with these groups of outsiders from the 1790s to the 1830s.
3. After the Civil War in the United States, from 1861 to 1865, relations between Indigenous Peoples on the Northern Plains and non-Indigenous peoples changed, for example in regard to trade and military relations. How did the shift from bison robes to bison hides as a major trade item influence these developments?
4. Compare and contrast major differences and similarities between the Mtis resistances of 1869/70 in Manitoba and 1885 in Saskatchewan. Why was the Canadian government less willing to negotiate with the Mtis in 1885?
5. How did Indigenous cultures of the Plains/Parkland regions influence the culture(s), economies and social structures of the Red River Mtis? Provide specific examples from the areas of material culture, social organization and subsistence patterns to exemplify this influence.
6. The Plains Cree leader Big Bear tried in various ways to create a unified political voice for his people. Discuss and explain his plans to bring about a political and economic strengthening of the Plains Cree and ultimately other Indigenous peoples, too. How did the Canadian government react to these efforts and why?
