The Dawes Act of 1887 was created to further assimilate Native Americans, claiming it would help them from extermination. Native Americans had been given reservations from the U.S but the Dawes Act took those areas and divided them into small sections among the Native Americans. It required the Native Americans to live separately on these sections of land causing them to be away from their nations. This connects to the theme by revealing how this method of assimilation that required Native Americans to live on these individual pieces was just another way to weaken their cultural structure and make them more dependent on the U.S.