“I Will Fight No More Forever” Chief Joseph
Name ________________________________
Tell General Howard I know his heart. What he told me before, I have in my heart. I am
tired of fighting. Our chiefs are killed. Looking Glass is dead. Toohoolhoolzote is dead.
The old men are all dead. It is the young men who say yes and no. He who led on the
young men is dead. It is cold and we have no blankets. The little children are freezing to
death. My people, some of them, have run away to the hills and have no blankets, no
food; no one knows where they are—perhaps freezing to death. I want to have time to
look for my children and see how many I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the
dead. Hear me, my chiefs. I am tired; my heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now
stands I will fight no more forever.
Answer the following questions, giving textual evidence to support your answer. (What do you know? How do you
know it?)
1. In “I Will Fight No More Forever,” what has happened to the leaders among Chief Joseph’s people?
2. What is the major reason that Chief Joseph gives for his surrender to US forces?
3. Annotate the passage, underlining words that are repeated. List these words below. What effect does this
repetition create?
4. What tone does Chief Joseph establish my using words such as heart, tired, freezing, and dead?
5. Judging by his speech, how would you describe Chief Joseph’s relationship to his people? What phrases or
sentences support your interpretation?
6. Dose Chief Joseph’s speech appeal to logic, to emotion, or to both? Explain your response.
Comparing Attitudes Toward War and Fighting
Both Chief Joseph’s speech and Stephen Crane’s poem address the subject of war and fighting. In 2-3 paragraphs,
describe the similarities and differences of the two texts. You may want to explore ideas such as tone, diction, imagery,
or mood.