Guided Notes
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Native American
Literature
Introduction
What you will discover
► Historical Context
► The idea of culture
► Characteristics of Native American
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Literature
Historical
Context
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Pre-Colonization
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► Before the Europeans came the Natives lived in
autonomous nations called tribes
► The Natives were around for 30 times longer than the
Europeans
► Most were nomadic hunters and gatherers, but overtime
decided to settle to focus on agriculture
► Many texts still refer to them as “primitive” people, even
though they had a rich and sophisticated culture.
► Before the Europeans the Natives created a rich,
inventive, and creative culture.
Pre-Colonization
► The Natives developed rich religious systems and
governments
► Not only did they adapt to the environment around
them, they worked to reshape the environment to fit
their needs.
► Although mostly ignored, Native Americans contributed
to modern medicine, art, architecture, and ecology.
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Enter the Colonizers
► The Natives showed settlers how to work the new
land
► They taught them woodworking and pivotal
agricultural techniques.
► Without the Natives, the Europeans would not
have survived the first winter.
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Effects of Colonist
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► The Natives were forced to learn the “White
Man’s” way of survival
► This lead to the collapse of Native Culture
► The Natives were forced to learn European
languages and culture
► This lead to the loss of a lot of Native
culture (identity, language, and traditions)
► Europeans brought diseases with them
killing hundreds of thousands of Natives
►
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Culture
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What is
culture?
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Culture is the umbrella term which
encompasses the social behavior,
institutions, and norms found in
human societies, as well as the
knowledge beliefs, arts, customs,
capabilities, and habits of the
individuals in these groups.
At time of Columbus,
350 distinct
languages existed in
North America
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No single Native
American culture
or literature.
Thousands of
distinct cultural
groups existed
as well.
so
Reflection 1:
On your paper, take five minutes to
answer the following question.
1. What is the connection between
culture and literature? Explain how
the two effect one another.
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Cultural appropriation vs Cultural appreciation
Cultural appropriation: the
unacknowledged or
inappropriate adoption of the
customs, practices, ideas, ect. Of
one people or society by
members of another and
typically more dominant people
or society.
Cultural appreciation: the
appreciating of another culture
in an effort to broaden their
perspective and connect with
others cross-culturally.
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Reflection 2:
1. What makes cultural
appropriation
dangerous? How
does this relate to
the Native
Americans.
2. What is the
significance and
difference between
cultural
appropriation and
cultural
appreciation?
3. Thinking in terms of
American History
from the Natives to
today, what is
America more
known for: cultural
appropriation or
cultural
appreciation.
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Native
American
Literature
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Characteristics of Native American Literature
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Oral
tradition
Myth/folk
tales
Oral tradition
means that
stories were told
orally. This was
a common
means of
communication
and
entertainment.
Native American
Literature mainly
comes to us in
the form of
myths and
folktales. Stories
were their way
of making sense
of the world
around them.
Trickster
The embodiment
of humanity's
flaws. Typically
seen as the
villain, they are
still regarded as
cultural heroes.
Symbolic
Landmarks
Hero
Initiation
Connects humanity
to the natural
world. Animals are
typically given
human
characteristics.
Objects and animals
are given equal
standing with
humans in terms of
the universe
► Morally
ambiguous
► Partially
divine
background
► Has to prove
themselves
► Good vs Evil
► Often dies
Tomorrow’s Assignment
► You will be tasked with investigating one aspect of Native American
literature.
► You will need to research a specific tribe, researching their unique
literary cultures.
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TOTD:
1. What aspect of Native American culture/literature interests you the
most?
2. Could Native American literature be considered the beginning of
American literary history? Explain your answer.
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