Communication of ideas thoughtfully through literature is a difficult task; however, Thomas King excels in his well-written narratives. With his well-crafted and creative stories, symbolism is woven through Thomas King’s narratives. In his stories such as “Totem,” “The Colour of Walls,” and “A Coyote Columbus Story,” the protagonists invite one to go beyond the surface of his tales, uncovering the hidden truths that they represent. All three tales are deeper in their meaning than one would perceive, with each one using symbolism in a different way to represent the challenges and discrimination First Nations have faced. Firstly, in “Totem,” Thomas King expertly employs symbolism to elevate the totem pole from a mere artifact and infuse it with …show more content…
The walls being described as having a history can be interpreted as Indigenous people having a deep and long personal connection to the land. However, Harper’s relentless efforts to erase the natural colour of the walls can be interpreted as a metaphor for the historical tendency of the colonizers to erase indigenous cultures. This is an important use of symbolism, as it puts to light how the Indigenous culture was attempted to be painted over by the white culture. White culture was supposedly forced upon the Indigenous people. Additionally, further symbolism lies with the extreme measures Harper takes in attempting to establish the colour white on his walls. Harper is so convinced of the colour white on his walls that he even goes as far as to “tear out the walls and start over” (Colour of Walls 2). This is major symbolism by Thomas King, since he is demonstrating the extremities people such as the government have gone to in an attempt to establish their culture, and erase that of the Indigenous. In taking extreme measures to erase something, Harper’s tactics resemble how the government has tried multiple …show more content…
The whimsical character of Coyote becomes a portrayal of challenging established historical counts. In this context, it refers to Christopher Columbus’ discovery of America. In the beginning, Coyote portrays many individuals in current society. His initial knowledge of Christopher Columbus being the one “who found Indians,” and not vice versa, is a depiction of many individuals who do not know the true nature of what unfolded in the past (A Coyote Columbus Story 1). As Coyote pointed out, these individuals have learned history from a “big red [history book]”(A Coyote Columbus Story 1). Essentially, this signifies that people remain uneducated in their knowledge of the truth from historical events. In school, they learned from sources such as the “big red history book”. Although these origins of information may exhibit details on how Columbus discovered America, they fail to inform the individuals of the tragedies he caused, such as the torture of Indigenous people for their gold. Ultimately, Columbus’ portrayal as a hero for discovering America taints individuals' view on how he stole Indigenous People from their land. Furthermore, another layer of symbolism in "A Coyote Columbus Story" is embodied in Christopher Columbus seemingly emerging out of nowhere. When Old Coyote “makes
In Thomas King’s A Seat in the Garden, I found it intriguing that at the end of the story the big Indian remained in Joe’s garden despite everything that he and Red had done to try to get rid of him. Additionally this is because in the type of story that King is parodying, that of the innocent whites being hounded by a relentless Native spirit, said spirit is typically dispersed through either destruction or appeasement. However, in King’s story, as evident by Joe’s multiple failed attempts to wack
Medicine River I enjoyed the book Medicine River, by Thomas King as well as the movie, which was based on the book. Although there were profound differences between the two, they were both pleasantly constructed. Having been instructed to read the book first, I was able to experience the full effect of the story and the message that the author intended for his readers. Although the book and the movie clearly relayed the same story, I would’ve better enjoyed the movie if it had included more incidents
Thomas King's All My Relations This is an anthology of writing by nineteen Native Canadian writers, which represents both an attempt to promote Native writing, and an effort to undermine commonly held misunderstandings. It is published by McClelland & Stewart, "The Canadian Publishers", which gives the collection a status of national and cultural importance, while indicating how these writers are working in and through Canada's hegemonic culture. This would seem to go some way towards undermining
neighbors, our bus driver, or anyone that we see on a daily bases. In Thomas King’s essay “You’re not the Indian I Had in Mind,” and his video “I’m not the Indian You Had in Mind,” he exemplifies the stereotype that many people make about Indians. King mentions in his essay that people always would say to him, “you’re not the Indian I had in mind,” because he did not look like the stereotypical Indian. Through King’s essay and video, I have been educated about this stereotype that I was unaware
Thomas Malory’s Le Morte D’arthur, T.H. White’s Once and Future King, and George Romero’s Knightriders encompass the evolution of the Arthurian tale from Malory’s time to the 1980s. Through this time many things have changed and these changes can be seen within the differences between each work. While there are many prominent differences chivalry or the knightly code is one of the main forces that tie these tales together. Malory reworks many of his sources to bring attention to the grand fellowship
Lewis Thomas' The Lives of a Cell The Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher by Lewis Thomas consists of short, insightful essays that offer the reader a different perspective on the world and on ourselves. The book draws its name from the first essay, "The Lives of a Cell," in which Thomas offers his observations on ecology and the role of cellular activity. He writes that the "uniformity of the earth's life, more astonishing then its diversity, is accountable by the high probability
Sir Thomas More - A Narrow-minded Hypocrite "What did nature ever create milder, sweeter and happier than the genius of Thomas More? All the birds come to him to be fed. There is not any man living so affectionate to his children as he, and he loveth his wife as if she were a girl of fifteen" (Erasmus). Sir Thomas More is often viewed as a Catholic saint and martyr. He is viewed this way because More took a stand against King Henry VIII’s divorce of Catherine of Aragon and later was beheaded
Thomas Paine wrote Right of Man in 1791, which was a guide to the Enlightenment ideas. In 1973, his book The Age of Reason, argued against Christian doctrines. Paine has a claim to the title The Father of the American Revolution due to Common Sense, originally titled Plain Truth, which was the pro-independence monograph pamphlet he anonymously published on January 10, 1776. This rapidly spread and it was the best-selling work in eighteenth-century America. It made complicated ideas understandable
ideas were put to the test. As many changes were created, ideas during this time influenced many other people from other countries to adopt the ideas. For example, the Enlightenment's political ideals had an influence on such as Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, and were reflected in the American Declaration of Independence and the United States Bill of Rights. The best philosopher to make an impact on
Thomas Paine and Mark Twain are two men who both wrote essays on two very different wars. Thomas Paine was the author of "These are the Times that Try Men's Souls" which discusses the Revolutionary War between America and the Great Britain and Mark Twain wrote the essay "The War Prayer" which was based on the Philippine- American War. After carefully analyzing both essays, I found that Thomas Paine makes the strongest argument overall compared to Mark Twain. Both writers effectively persuade their
Rhetorical Analysis of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail" In his essay "Letter from Birmingham Jail", Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. disproves the assumptions of people that believe racism is acceptable when he compares the maltreatment of blacks to the inhumane treatment of the Jews by Hitler. King establishes a relationship with his audience by connecting on a level that is larger than the exploitation of African American's rights. He forces his readers to think about
Comparative Essay Many themes in popular literature today include a type of betrayal to others or themselves. In the story Le Morte D’Arthur by Sir Thomas Malory, a noble knight by the name of Sir Bedivere is ordered to dispose of a sword and instead secretly hides it under a tree betraying his king. In “Genesis 3” Adam’s new companion named Eve becomes too curious about a forbidden tree when talking to a serpent and disobeys god and eats it. Sir Bedivere and Eve both betray others through their
Childhood Thomas Carlyle was born in Ecclefechan, Scotland on December 4, 1795. Thomas Carlyle had a very small family. Thomas Carlyle had a father who indeed liked to use his talents to benefit the citizens of Scotland. One of his talents was building and creating certain objects. Thomas’s father used that skill later on in his life and became a stone masonry. In this field Thomas’s father created things such as tombs, monuments and even cathedrals. His father was also a Calvinist .Thomas Carlyle
Antigone - The Tragic Flaw Antigone, Sophocles’ classical Greek tragedy, presents tragic flaw as the cause of the destruction of Creon, the king of Thebes. This essay examines that flaw and the critical perspective on it. Robert D. Murray, Jr. in “Thought and Structure in Sophoclean Tragedy” gives the perspective of the Greek audience, and thereby the reason why there has to be a tragic flaw in Sophoclean tragedy: “A Greek of the fifth century would, of course, have felt. . . . that moral
Comparing Thomas Paine's Common Sense and Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence In Thomas Paine's Common Sense, there are some similarities and differences in the tone as compared to Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. Paine's approach to his work contrasts that of Jefferson's. However, they still use the same basic techniques to making their feelings known, which include examining the problem, giving reasons for why it is a problem, and offering their opinion on the