Native American Storytelling Analysis
Native American Storytelling
Kyle Lysher
ENG/301
05/10/2015
Julie Kares
Native American Storytelling While each culture on the planet has its own unique identity, an identity that is usually rich with traditions and habits, few cultures have such a grounded and strong cultural identity as the Native Americans. Many of their beliefs and traditions are shrouded in mystery, yet seemingly on display for the world to see - a culture of conflict and peace, acceptance and denial, the Native American culture is wrought with contradictions, contradictions that lend themselves very well to the use of storytelling that has been at the root of their culture. While other cultures may have made use of storytelling during times when the written form …show more content…
When browsing Native American literature, it is almost impossible to separate literary conventions from prominent works in their culture as storytelling is both a historical record and a means by which Native Americans often preserve their cultural identity. Historically, stories were typically told by one person, such as a tribal elder, to a group of others, typically younger people, as a means to speak about the history of their people while also providing an important lesson about behavior (Vizenor, 1995). Each story in Native American culture holds a different value to be imparted to a younger generation, sometimes warning young women away from men of ill intentions or recounting heroic deeds of warriors long since passed, but each story shares a common bond - the use of a narrator. "The Rise of the Song" by N. Scott Momaday is a prime example of the narrator that is typically common in Native …show more content…
Tales of acceptance or the lack thereof, tales of forgotten traditions and the emergence of new traditions - all contained within the stories that are shared with the written word, yet still have an air of oral tradition. Recounting the struggles that the Native Americans have had to face while struggling to be a recognized voice in a land that they once owned, their literature holds an important place within the global lexicon, a place that should be examined by anyone that is not afraid to face their own feelings of
Kyle Lysher
ENG/301
05/10/2015
Julie Kares
Native American Storytelling While each culture on the planet has its own unique identity, an identity that is usually rich with traditions and habits, few cultures have such a grounded and strong cultural identity as the Native Americans. Many of their beliefs and traditions are shrouded in mystery, yet seemingly on display for the world to see - a culture of conflict and peace, acceptance and denial, the Native American culture is wrought with contradictions, contradictions that lend themselves very well to the use of storytelling that has been at the root of their culture. While other cultures may have made use of storytelling during times when the written form …show more content…
When browsing Native American literature, it is almost impossible to separate literary conventions from prominent works in their culture as storytelling is both a historical record and a means by which Native Americans often preserve their cultural identity. Historically, stories were typically told by one person, such as a tribal elder, to a group of others, typically younger people, as a means to speak about the history of their people while also providing an important lesson about behavior (Vizenor, 1995). Each story in Native American culture holds a different value to be imparted to a younger generation, sometimes warning young women away from men of ill intentions or recounting heroic deeds of warriors long since passed, but each story shares a common bond - the use of a narrator. "The Rise of the Song" by N. Scott Momaday is a prime example of the narrator that is typically common in Native …show more content…
Tales of acceptance or the lack thereof, tales of forgotten traditions and the emergence of new traditions - all contained within the stories that are shared with the written word, yet still have an air of oral tradition. Recounting the struggles that the Native Americans have had to face while struggling to be a recognized voice in a land that they once owned, their literature holds an important place within the global lexicon, a place that should be examined by anyone that is not afraid to face their own feelings of