"The Cutting of My Long Hair" is a short story by Zitkala-Sa, a Native American writer and activist. The story is a poignant and powerful reflection on the cultural assimilation and loss of identity experienced by Native American people, particularly women, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
In the story, Zitkala-Sa describes her experience as a young girl attending a government-run boarding school for Native American children. At the school, the students were required to cut their long hair, a symbol of their traditional culture and identity. For Zitkala-Sa, this was a deeply painful and traumatic experience, as she felt that by cutting her hair, she was being forced to abandon her cultural heritage and embrace a foreign, Western way of life.
Despite her reluctance and sadness, Zitkala-Sa ultimately complied with the school's demand to cut her hair. However, she did so with a deep sense of loss and grief, feeling as though she had been robbed of a fundamental part of her identity.
Throughout the story, Zitkala-Sa uses vivid and emotive language to convey the sense of loss and betrayal that she felt as a result of the cutting of her hair. She writes of the "grief that gnawed at my heart" and the "bitter tears" that she shed as she cut her hair. These powerful descriptions serve to underscore the deep sense of loss and cultural displacement that many Native American people experienced during this time.
In conclusion, "The Cutting of My Long Hair" is a poignant and powerful reflection on the cultural assimilation and loss of identity experienced by Native American people, particularly women, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Through her evocative language and personal narrative, Zitkala-Sa conveys the deep sense of loss and cultural displacement that many Native American people experienced during this time.
