You are here because of what happened to your great-grandmother long ago. With one sentence, Luci Tapahonso explains beautifully the historical generational trauma Native Americans have had to endure and are still enduring today. Luci Tapahonso, in her two poems, "The American Flag" and "In 1864," links Dine history to contemporary Native realities, and in doing so, provides intergenerational hope and instruction. In 1864 she tells a story within a story, at moments the poem is hard to read because of the horrific actions they were taken against the Navajo people during their forced removal of their homelands to In 1864, 8,354 Navajos were forced to walk three hundred miles, from Dinetah to Bosque Redondo which is located …show more content…
The way that Tapahonso describes the whole ordeal in detail is critical in describing the events in the poem but also in the format of oral story-telling. The author is telling a story to a daughter. A story that must have been passed down for generations and for generations to come. It is a important story that must be told because it explains the history of the Navajos and how the use of turquoise become a part of the traditional regalia. The story also tells how Navajo fry-bread become famous and is now considered a traditional food for all native tribes. Tapahonso gives strength and hope in 1864 to the younger generation by giving them education of their history. Luci Tapahonso uses the same format and them in her poem, "The American Flag" in that poem is describing what the American flag means to her, even though the American government had cause a lot of historical trauma for tribes. Tapahonso writes that the Navajo had taken on a new meaning to the flag, and it is not anger or hatred for the United States, as she states, Still, we watched for signs of compassion, as these soldiers had been born of a mother somewhere. Their mothers had been delighted to hear their first …show more content…
Her voice is one of kindness and thoughtfulness, that has not been heard from a native woman 's perceptive in native American literature that much in the past. There seems to be native male dominance in the past for native American literature. Tapahonso has chosen to use women 's strength in their culture as a major part in her poetry and uses her daughters in her writing as well. I have learned that Tapahonso only in native language of Navajo, and only translates for publishing purposes. She also prefers her work to be sang
The story "Moowis, the Indian Coquette" is a unique story furthered by the author's background. Jane's parents were the opposites that helped her become who she was. Her mother was the daughter of a Ojibwe, an Indian tribe, war chief; this fact enriched her with the Ojibwe culture and language. Her father was an Irish fur trader whose influence helped her learn more about literature. This particular piece delves into the lifestyle of an Indians and how it is not as different from others. Jane would go on to have an important role in the Native American literature of America.
In this essay, McFarland discusses Native American poetry and Sherman Alexie’s works. He provides an overview of Alexie’s writing in both his poems and short stories. A brief analysis of Alexie’s use of humor is also included.
This quote describes how Louise Halfe uses all four common elements of native literature in her writings. I have chosen to discuss two of the elements she frequently uses, Spirituality and Orality in relation to three of her poems: My Ledders, She Told Me and The Heat of my Grandmothers.
As Silko says, "Where I come from, the words most highly valued are those spoken from the heart, unpremeditated and unrehearsed. Among Pueblo people, written speech or statement is highly suspect because the true feelings of speaker remain hidden as she read the words that are detached from the occasion and audience. " (pg 1 ) Now days, whenever you turn on TV or Radio, and there is somebody giving speech, it is read off the paper that has been written by a professional and proof read by a lawyer or two. Silko is absolutely and right, and I agree with her that the speaker does not express what she or he had in the heart and wanted others to hear. For pueblo people, storytelling is very important. "Pueblo expression resembles something like a spider web - with many little threads radiating from the center, crisscrossing each other. As with the web, the structure emerges as it is made and you must simply listen and trust, as Pueblo people do, that meaning will be made." (pg 1 ) From reading this essay, I noticed that one of the distinctive ways stories are told at Laguna Pueblo, many individual words have their own stories, and there are few dimensions of story telling, which always includes the listeners, and story identity. No matter what kind of story is being told, it always has the origins. And since everything and everybody have different origins an...
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 the value of the Native American past, these literary works have also revealed knowing perspectives on the meaning of the modern world in the lives of contemporary Native Americans.
“America” by Claude McKay is a poem dealing with McKay’s thoughts as he processes through his inner turmoil as he faces the reality of being rejected from a country that he loves. As Claude unveils his feelings to the reader, a creative description of America is presented. The poem deals with love and loyalty and the vicious rejection when you aren’t accepted in a society’s culture. In the short poem “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus showcases and contrasts the ancient Greek statue Helios and the Statue of liberty. Lazarus lets the reader compare the ancient Colossus of Rhodes, representing traditional masculinity in contrast with the New Colossus a feminine symbol of unity and refuge for those in need. Both poems are social commentaries
Poems are forms of communication that give an applicable view of the past, present and future events. Reading the poem titled “America”, written by Richard Blanco brought me memories from my childhood in my parent’s house and also what is happening now in my house as a parent. The poem explains how one person doesn’t have all the knowledge about something. It also, describes the daily life struggles I experienced during my childhood, when my parent 's and I moved from our hometown to live in another town becuase of their work and it brings to light the conflict of cultures I and my children are going through since we moved to United State of America .
The symbolism of the Flag was thus interpreted by Washington: “We take the stars from Heaven, the red from our mother country, separating it by white stripes, thus showing that we have separated from her, and the white stripes shall go down to posterity representing Liberty.”
The poem contains the central idea that many of these children never understood what home really means. In Native American culture the people venerate earth and it is referred to as mother nature which we see in the poem. The rails cut right through their home but they don’t view them like the average person. They view the tracks as if they are scars across mother earths face and her face is the Native American’s homeland. She is scarred for eternity but she is perfect in their dreams. This symbolism is ironic because the children try to reach home using the railroad that ruined natural life for them and many other Native Americans. In the second stanza the speaker says “The worn-down welts of ancient punishments lead back and fourth” (15-16). Which can be talking about the marks on the children’s bodies after getting caught while running away. But the “word-down welts” can also symbolize the welts that were put on mother nature throughout history. The last five lines of the poem sums up the symbol of hope through their memories and dreams. The last line of the poem says, “the spines of names and leaves.” (20-24). The “spines” symbolize the physical strength of the children and their ability to maintain hope individually “names”, and for their tribe
Although the work is 40 years old, “Custer Died for Your Sins” is still relevant and valuable in explaining the history and problems that Indians face in the United States. Deloria book reveals the Whites view of Indians as false compared to the reality of how Indians are in real life. The forceful intrusion of the U.S. Government and Christian missionaries have had the most oppressing and damaging effect on Indians. There is hope in Delorias words though. He believes that as more tribes become more politically active and capable, they will be able to become more economically independent for future generations. He feels much hope in the 1960’s generation of college age Indians returning to take ownership of their tribes problems.
Although the work is 40 years old, “Custer Died for Your Sins” is still relevant and valuable in explaining the history and problems that Indians face in the United States. Deloria’s book reveals the White view of Indians as false compared to the reality of how Indians are in real life. The forceful intrusion of the U.S. Government and Christian missionaries have had the most oppressing and damaging affect on Indians. There is hope in Delorias words though. He believes that as more tribes become more politically active and capable, they will be able to become more economically independent for future generations. He feels much hope in the 1960’s generation of college age Indians returning to take ownership of their tribes problems and build a better future for their children.
A display of proud patriotism in the variety of the American people is seen in Walt Whitman’s poem I Hear America Singing. Whitman “hears America singing” which is the sound of American people joyfully singing as they work in unity. Each worker is transforming America to be the best it can be with an upbeat attitude as they try to make the best of their work efforts. Their lively songs are filled with pride as they “each sing what belongs to him or her” (Whitman) which describes each of their unique traits that makes them special and valued citizens of America. Of the various images depicted the ending even includes the workers united as a whole singing up till the very end of their day. Upon further analyzation of the poem, the method of writing
In his poem, Sandburg deliberately uses a free-verse style of writing. This style is better-suited for Sandburg’s purpose in writing the poem because it directly emphasizes the point of each line while appealing to the common man. The first line of the poem expresses, “Hope is a tattered flag and a dream out of time” (Sandburg 120). Here, “tattered” provides an indication of conflict. The “dream out of time” is signifying that the dream of hope is of another era. During the time of the depression, the American people had so many troubles that they felt hope was unreachable to them. Mahony explains that this image “portrays hope as a survivor, emerging not unscathed from battle” (129). Sandburg uses clear and understandable language in his free-verse style to get his point across to all types of people in an understandable manner.
One of elder woman describe how Navajo suffered during the long walk and mentioned about that pretty girls were captured and rape. Tony Barta mentioned that attempt is considered an intention to destroy the group, in this case
Nichols also uses symbolism in her poem, the hurricane is a symbol of her Caribbean culture. They are very irregular in