Most likely irony. Paradise is usually instilled in peoples' minds as somewhere refreshing and heavenly, and the next couple of words say "ahead of them is an empty oil-covered beach" which clearly objects with the paradise statement.
The Dawes Act was introduced by Congressman Henry Dawes of Massachusetts. The idea behind that law was that Indian tribes would be broken up and those who chose to leave their tribes would be granted United States citizenship.
Hope I helped I didn't plagiarism or copy any thing word for word i typed it out
A flaw that can drive a person away from a certain place or person.
3) the winner of the popular vote did not become president
