Read the excerpt from “Last Rites of the Indian Dead.”

What if museums, universities, and government agencies could put your dead relatives on display or keep them in boxes to be cut up and otherwise studied? What if you believed that the spirits of the dead could not rest until their human remains were placed in a sacred area?

The ordinary American would say there ought to be a law— and there is, for ordinary Americans. The problem for American Indians is that there are too many laws of the kind that make us the archeological property of the United States and too few of the kind that protect us from such insults.
How does Harjo’s style affect her message?

Select the two correct answers.


Harjo explains American Indians’ beliefs about what happens after death to establish common ground with her audience.

She asks questions that cannot be answered to demonstrate her disdain for the actions of the American government.

Harjo uses graphic language to emphasize that American Indian remains are being exploited by American researchers.

She uses sarcasm to highlight the double standard that exists for groups outside of the American majority.