Native American Literature : The Development Of Native American Literature

Native American literature from the Southeastern United States is deeply rooted in the oral traditions of the various tribes that have historically called that region home. While the tribes most integrally associated with the Southeastern U.S. in the American popular mind--the FIVE CIVILIZED TRIBES (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole)--were forcibly relocated to Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma) from their ancestral territories in the American South, descendents of those tribes have created compelling literary works that have kept alive their tribal identities and histories by incorporating traditional themes and narrative elements. While reflecting profound awareness of

In American Indian Stories, University of Nebraska Press Lincoln and London edition, the author, Zitkala-Sa, tries to tell stories that depicted life growing up on a reservation. Her stories showed how Native Americans reacted to the white man's ways of running the land and changing the life of Indians. "Zitkala-Sa was one of the early Indian writers to record tribal legends and tales from oral tradition" (back cover) is a great way to show that the author's stories were based upon actual events in her life as a Dakota Sioux Indian. This essay will describe and analyze Native American life as described by Zitkala-Sa's American Indian Stories, it will relate to Native Americans and their interactions with American societies, it will discuss

The second half of the eighteenth century introduced a new expression to the literary world. The new expression was a voice that belonged to the African American writers. The African American writers wrote with a flair and brought a new perspective to the realm of literature. Literature, as America had known it, consisted of works from Christopher Columbus, John Smith, William Bradford, and Mary Rowlandson; these writers captured the essence of life, through their eyes. Through their eyes, the readers were able to see what life was like for Christopher Columbus through his letters capturing details of the voyages. Another famous writing in the eighteenth century was a voice from a different perspective than voyages but, it was a voice dealing with savages, as they were called. This voice was the voice of Mary Rowlandson, one of the first female writers in American Literature. Rowlandson’s narrative was based on her captivity with the Indians and the reestablishment of her life after she was returned to her hometown. Through narration and translation, the Native Americans were able to capture their literature in their native tongue. What type of literature could the Native Americans have to contribute to the literary world? The Native Americans, like other cultures, have stories that have been passed down from generation to generation, in the form of oral expressions. The oral expressions the Native

As a student engaged in the American Education System the only time I was exposed to Native American folklore was when I was fortunate enough to take an American History course or read their stories in English class as examples to analyze. What we often times did not read, however, were the roles these folktales played as crucial to the customs of Native American society. Although, as I have begun to read more Native folktales within my undergraduate English course I can analyze the impact of folklore on the Native American Culture.

Native American literature is the root of cultural storytelling, which is told through oral tradition, this consist of stories and songs verbally. Native American literature use literary conventions in the root of myth and symbolic examples in storytelling. The book “Native American Literature: A Brief Introduction and Anthology” gives good insight into the Native American ways of life and how storytelling is a part of that life. Short stories by Simon Oritz and Luther Standing Bear share life experience and cultural diversity. The reader can see how historical, social and political, and cultural ways play a role in the Native Americans storytelling.

The monograph focuses several Native American religious prophets that inspired the Pan-Indian movement to unify the Eastern Woodland tribes together in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Gregory Evans Dowd argues that the narrative examines the religious practices of the Eastern Woodlands Native Americans. Continuing his argument Dowd states that instead of focusing on a particular “Indian point of view,” the monograph investigates two groups the nativists and accommodationists (Dowd, xxii). The author supports his arguments by using journals, military records, and several primary sources. An instance of one of the primary sources that Dowd uses is Benjamin Hawkins’ Sketch of the Creek Country in the Years 1798 and 1799.

Nature is a part of the Native American culture; in fact, it is essential to the Native Americans. The landscape, scenery, plants, animals, climate, habitat, and the microorganisms that all make up the Native American’s culture demonstrates the true connection between nature and this culture. In contrasting points, two Native American writers reveals what is occurring on their land; Momaday portrays the Rainy Mountain as a new creation and a new life for living organisms, while Brown portrays the Plains as a decimated piece of land induced by the man made items that were created from humans. Both Momaday and Brown explains the scenery and weather in the way they see the land; even though the both lands may seem like they have similar attributes, this idea is actually quite the antithesis.

“The Native Americans questioned their purpose and place in the world. For entertainment they would gather together and celebrate their culture and their heritage through oral storytelling. These stories often served a few purposes: to give them a sense of purpose, explain where they came from, and to entertain.” (Ncvps notes, module 1) they Native Americans told different stories of who they believed created world along with everything in the world and how

He shows the Native Americans as strategists and improvisers in dire times, giving them a greater depth than the flat portrayal of common history. Often, the view of history is skewed based on the winner or the recorder. In America’s case, this is even more the case since the Europeans were the ones documenting their

Deadly companions seem like an interesting book to read for school. It seems perfect for a report or a book to help with a class. I only read the fifth chapter and I went into detail on how diseases affected the native Americans and the Europeans. The chapter showed that the European come to America was completely awful it did help both worlds in one way or another. The large livestock brought over from Europe helped solve famine. Overall what I got from this text was the native Americans had no chance of winning. They couldn't keep up with the material reproduction of Europeans. I don’t know how many times natives Americans fought each other but in Europe, it always seemed like there was always a war. The Europeans were also advertised in

It is 9:15 a.m. Tuesday morning, and Brittanee Ramallo walks into an African-American women’s literature class with her khakis, button down shirt, tie and vest on. She may be small in height, but her presence makes up for it.

During the early American time period, native Indians would create literature to record their new discoveries or explanations for life’s mysteries. The early American time period consisted of many myths from the native Indians that helped the people understand

The United States has been built on a land with a history of its own. Native Americans lived all throughout North America before colonization. Although some of them are long gone, they have not been forgotten. Native Americans have rich and diverse culture that has been preserved through stories, myths, songs, and legends; all passed down through generations. One of the most important themes in Native American literature is the relationship between people and nature. This plays a role in almost all of their stories. Two of these stories are “The Man to Send Rain Clouds” by Leslie Silko and “The Way to Rainy Mountain” by N. Scott Momaday. I will be comparing these stories and exploring similarities and differences in their

Throughout all of Native American literature there are a consistent three themes: nature, animals, and ancestors. Native Americans lived out their need for nature and show how significant they believe it is in their actions. The believed they owe the Earth everything. The Native Americans belonged to the Earth, the Earth did not belong to them. In the Native American culture there were two significant deities, the Earth Mother and the Great Spirit.

Native American literatures embrace the memories of creation stories, the tragic wisdom of native ceremonies, trickster narratives, and the outcome of chance and other occurrences in the most diverse cultures in the world. These distinctive literatures, eminent in both oral performances and in the imagination of written narratives, cannot be discovered in reductive social science translations or altogether understood in the historical constructions of culture in one common name. (Vizenor 1)