Native American Oral Traditions English III Manning

  Few people have been as appreciated and, at the same time, as misrepresented as the many different cultures today called American Indian or Native American.  Native American Literature has been a living oral tradition, but was never treated with the same respect as European, or Western, literature.  Most stories have a similar oral background however. The Sun Still Rises in the Same Sky

  Native American cultures use stories to teach moral lessons and convey practical information about the natural world.  American Indian literature also reflects a view of the natural world that it more inclusive than the one typically seen in Western literature. Generalizations

  The Native American universe is not dominated by human beings. Animals and humans are often interchangeable in myths and folk tales.  Origin myths may even feature animals as the instruments of creation. Generalizations (cont…)

  All American Indian cultures also show a keen awareness of the power of metaphor.  Words are as powerful and alive as the human breathe that carries them.  Songs and chants can make things happen—call game animals, bring rain, cure the sick, or destroy and enemy.  For Native Americans, speech, or oratory—often relying on striking similes drawn from nature—is a highly developed and respected literary form. Generalizations (cont…)

  Passed on from generation to generation, oral traditions preserve historical continuity.  QUESTION: In what ways do stories help preserve the cultures from which they come? Oral Tradition

  Provide explanations about the world and its origins  Teach moral lessons and convey practical information  Reflect the belief that the natural world includes both human beings and animals  Respect speech as a powerful literary form Characteristics of Native American Oral Tradition

  QUESTIONS :  Let’s talk about when you were a child. What were some stories you were told or learned as a child?  Now, think about how that story changed your worldview.  Did it have a moral lesson? Teach you something about life?  Did it teach you something about nature? Stories

  The Boy Who Cried Wolf  Aesop’s Fables  Think of Disney movies! Examples

  Most myths contain archetypes.  An ARCHETYPE is a very old imaginative pattern that appears in literature across cultures and is repeated through the ages. Archetypes include characters, plots, images, themes, and settings. Archetypes

  An ANTONYM is a word that has the opposite meaning of another word.  Some examples are light/dark simple/complicated growing/dying open/closed long/short Antonyms