karl mays most popular work originally published in 1892 and influenced by harriet beecher stowe winnetou is the story of a young apache chief told by his white friend and bloodbrother old shatterhand the action takes place in the us southwest in the latter half of the 1800s where the indian way of life is threatened by the first transcontinental railroad winnetou the only native indian chief who could have united the various rival tribes to reach a settlement with the whites is murdered his tragic death foreshadows the death of his people mays central theme here as in much of his work is the relationship between aggression racism and religious intolerance