Reading Notes: Blackfeet Indian Stories Part B

Reading Notes

Blackfeet Indian Stories Part B

Wow is what I have to say to the second half of these stories. I remember saying in my first reading post that everything seems nostalgic to me because of the writing style. I know that at the beginning of this unit, it was said that Native American's told stories of hero's as well and that this was one of those stories. As a child, I can see how you would look up to someone that wants to help people and is triumphant in every task pinned upon him but, these stories were also pretty gruesome to read. It made me think about how they may have been different boundaries for them when telling stories and allowing their children to learn lessons. Concerning storytelling methods, It was quite difficult for me to build separations as I went forward because they liked to use the same nouns for the characters. In the beginning, there were so many people named "old man" that I wasn't aware of the difference in characters until I read further. They also liked to put emphasis on helping the elderly, which was nice. There was respect for your elders, and this showed the values that they set forth around their time period and tradition. It also helped to guide the understanding of the lessons being told from each story; though some of the content was the same each lesson was unique. Something I didn't like about the "Blood Boy" stories was that it became too predictable when he encountered different evil beings. I wanted him to be involved in more dynamic situations so that to children being told this story, he may seem like more of a hero in all aspects. It was a little unsettling that he ended up being the murder of an evil creature and all of those connected to that evil creature.

Image: Bison Hunting (Wikipedia)
Bibliography: Blackfeet Indian Stories by George Bird Grinnell (Un-Textbook)