Question

\an indians view of indian affairs\ by chief joseph, 1879 my friends, i have been asked to show you my heart. i am glad to have a chance to do so. i want the white people to understand my people. some of you think an indian is like a wild animal. this is a great mistake. i will tell you all about our people, and then you can judge whether an indian is a man or not. i believe much trouble and blood would be saved if we opened our hearts more. i will tell you in my way how the indian sees things. the white man has more words to tell you how they look to him, but it does not require many words to speak the truth. what i have to say will come from my heart, and i will speak with a straight tongue. ah - cum - kin - i - ma - me - hut (the great spirit) is looking at me, and will hear me. my name is in - mut - loo - yah - lat - lat (thunder traveling over the mountains). i am chief of the wal - lam - wat - kin band of ghute - pa - lu, or nez perces (nose - pierced indians). i was born in eastern oregon, thirty - eight winters ago. my father was chief before me. when a young man, he was called joseph by mr. spaulding, a missionary. he died a few years ago. he left a good name on earth. he advised me well for my people. our fathers gave us many laws, which they had learned from their fathers. these laws were good. they told us to treat all men as they treated us; that we should never be the first to break a bargain; that it was a disgrace to tell a lie; that we should speak only the truth; that it was a shame for one man to take from another his wife, or to take his property without paying for it. we were taught to believe that the great spirit sees and hears everything, and that he never forgets, that hereafter he will give every man a spirit - home according to his deserts: if he has been a good man, he will have a good home; if he has been a bad man, he will have a bad home. this i believe, and all my people believe the same. how would the meaning of \an indians view of indian affairs\ most likely have been affected had hin - mah - too - yah - lat - kekt (chief joseph) adopted a tone of resentment instead? it would appear as an accusation rather than a plea. it would appear as a request rather than an accusation. it would appear as a narrative rather than a demand. it would appear as a threat rather than a narrative.

Explanation:

A tone of resentment would make the speech seem more like an accusation. A plea is a request for help or mercy. Resentment implies blame and accusation. The original text is a plea for understanding. A resentful tone would shift the focus from a plea (request for understanding) to an accusation (blaming the white people).

Answer:

It would appear as an accusation rather than a plea.