Academic Journal Blog: Module 2 Link Review

After reviewing the links from Module 2 in the course "First Peoples of America" I found one particularly interesting. This link takes us to the apocalyptic myths belonging to my focal group, the Pawnee.
http://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/Pawnee-Acopalyptic-Myth-Pawnee.html

The following quote is one of three myths presented in the above cited website (I added an original image I made in adobe photoshop for a visual accommodation):

"The command for the final destruction of the world is in the hands of the four gods of the directions. The West will issue the command that the world be destroyed and the East will obey. Then the stars in heaven will fall to the new earth and become people. The people left in this world at the time of destruction will fly high into the sky and become stars themselves."

Image above copyright Joshua T. Jessen (2013)

Many Native American cultures shared a belief that there are people living in the sky and the first people have come from the sky. It makes me think about how much "wonder" the night sky must have brought to the native peoples and to people all over the world for that matter. 

The influence that the night sky has had on people (or the sun) and their various beliefs is something of interest for me. In the New Testament in the Bible there was the all important star of Bethlehem which (apparently) led the wise men to the new born Jesus. 

It is of no surprise to me that stars have played important roles in various religions because during the creation of these religions (which try to explain the un-explainable) incorporating something that is awe inspiring (comets & constellations), sometimes scary (meteors), and most importantly un-explainable (anything in the sky before people started using deductive reasoning and tools to help them make sense of it all) seamlessly fits the bill. 

Spirits can appear to be un-touchable, un-graspable, beyond the limits of mankind. Stars share these same qualities and can conveniently be linked with other things unknown and "divine" hence the beliefs of native peoples and the evolution of religion in general. 

Work cited:

"Native American Indian Legends - Pawnee Acopalyptic Myth - Pawnee." First People of America and Canada - Native American Indians. Turtle Island. Legends, Treaties, Clipart.. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013. <http://www.firstpeople.us/FP-Html-Legends/Pawnee-Acopalyptic-Myth-Pawnee.html>.

Cazenovia Museum: Makings of the Iroqouis

"Mocassins of smoked deerhide with beaded appliques. 

Iroquois, made for the tourist trade. Circa 1880."

"Wall pocket in the form of a woman's boot with elaborate beading. Iroquois. Last 1/4 19th c.

"Bone harpoon. Iroquois. Prehistoric."

A Trip to the Cazenovia Museum

I recently went on a trip to the Cazenovia Museum. I found some very interesting artifacts while I was there. See images below:

"Pipe of clay with human figure."

Iroquois. New York State. Prehistoric.

"Flint arrowheads and tools of various types, ages and areas."

"Basket with human figures. Pima (Arizona). Late 19th c. "

Interesting Findings

While reading through Mark Sutton's An Introduction to Native North America, and other readings such as Everything You Wanted to know about Indians but were Afraid to Ask by Anton Truer. I found some interesting things about the native cultures of this land I live on. 

One thing important to note are the misconceptions I and many of us have on the living arrangements of native groups. It is typical for one who has not learned of the real living environments of native groups to assume they lived in teepees. As seen in a prior posting about the Pueblo structures, native peoples lived in a variety of complex structures. The Haudenosaunee lived in long houses (which is actually what their name translates to "People of the Longhouse"). For an example of a Long House see below:

http://americanindianshistory.blogspot.com/2011/08/native-american-indian-houses.html

More on houses can be found in Sutton. My focus group, the Pawnee, can be seen in a photograph with a lodge which was among "several hundred earth covered houses, each with 30-50 people" (Sutton, 268). There is also a large ceremonial structure found on page 254 in Sutton. Moreover, the Hopi Indians had advanced houses with fireplaces and underground homes as well as shown in a previous post showcasing the book Arrow to the Sun by Gerald McDermott. On page 70 in Sutton, we can see an illustration of a Unangan house on Unalaska Island drawn in 1778. These houses were built from driftwood and whale bone among other materials. 

Most of the general public simply does not know about the rich cultural differences among the First Peoples of North America. The "Indians lived in teepees" generalization is one misconception of many. 

I have found something interesting about the Pawnee, the group I have focused much research on. Instead of glorifying murdering their enemy, they participated in something called "counting coup." This practice entailed physically touching an enemy which gained the individual prowess and points (Sutton, 249). I just found this strange and interesting. 

Another note-able find about the Pawnee people is their fear of those who have been scalped and lived beyond that horrific experience. These people were allowed to do basically anything they wanted and were seen as "spiritual or powerful." If the community feared them too much the community sometimes decided to execute the individual (Sutton, 269). 

Works cited:

Sutton, Mark. 2012. An introduction to Native America. Boston: Pearson publishers. Print.

"American Indian's History: Native American Indian Houses, Illustrated." American Indian's History. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013. <http://americanindianshistory.blogspot.com/2011/08/native-american-indian-houses.html>.

The Pawnee: Paintings by George Catlin

La-dóo-ke-a, Buffalo Bull, a Grand Pawnee Warrior

1832

George Catlin

Born: Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 1796

Died: Jersey City, New Jersey 1872

oil on canvas

29 x 24 in. (73.7 x 60.9 cm)

Smithsonian American Art Museum

Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.

1985.66.100

Not currently on view

http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artwork/?id=3945

La-wáh-he-coots-la-sháw-no, Brave Chief, a Skidi (Wolf) Pawnee

1832

George Catlin

Born: Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania 1796

Died: Jersey City, New Jersey 1872

oil on canvas

29 x 24 in. (73.7 x 60.9 cm)

Smithsonian American Art Museum

Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.

1985.66.110

Not currently on view

http://americanart.si.edu/collections/search/artwork/?id=3936

Arrow to the Sun

The second book I came across was called Arrow to the Sun: A Pueblo Indian Tale, by Gerald McDermott. This book seemed to not only have an accurate depiction of a cosmological match between the cosmological link of a Sun God, but the building structures were accurately illustrated as well (see below)

In the story, which as you may be able to see from the pictures above is brightly colored and illustrated, there is a boy who is seen without a father and he becomes picked on when he is actually the sun of the Sun God. I found a connection between this premise and that of the Pawnee which is a native group I have been focusing my studies on. The connection is that anyone who was seen without a known father was considered an outcast. I felt sad for those people for they were among other outcasts which were comprised of lazy people and those who were being accused of witchcraft, and survivors of scalping who were actually considered very powerful and feared (Sutton, 269).



Work cited:

McDermott, Gerald. Arrow to the sun: a Pueblo Indian tale. New York: Viking Press, 1974. Print.

Sutton, Mark Q. An Introduction to Native North America. Boston: Pearson Publishers, 2012. Print.

"Pueblo Indian Dwellings." U.S. History Images. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2013. <http://ushistoryimages.com/pueblo-indian-dwellings.shtm>.

The Rough Faced Girl

As I was at the library for my Children's Literature class I stumbled across a few books of what appeared to be Native American origin. I first looked at The Rough Faced Girl by Rafe Martin and Illustrated by David Shannon. The only thing I could perceive as relating to the cosmology of the Algonquin or the Haudenosaunee (the setting of this story is on the shores of Lake Ontario) was the invisible being (either), or God in the sky in the story (Haudenosaunee). Even that though was not entirely in line with what I have found in Mark Q. Sutton's highlight of the Haudenosaunee in his book An Introduction of Native North America. 

The cosmology of the Haudenosaunee calls for people who once lived in the sky and a Chief and his daughter, Sky Woman, who eventually made the land and populated it (Sutton, 290-291). What follows is more of a line between good and evil.

We find the focus primarily on the girl who is without beauty (without external beauty that is) and scars on her face who is able to see the invisible God. Then after being able to see him she is married to him. This is a very brief summary.

This story appears to be based mainly on the story of Cinderella.  In any case my argument here is that this was probably taken as a story from Natives after it had been changed by them upon receiving it from the Europeans. According to the author of Ai-Ling Louie, the story of Cinderella actually originates thousands of years ago in China. So this story is arguably not of Native American origin.

I later found out that the story of Cinderella was indeed shared to the Native American Micmac community and later retold by Cyrus MacMillan (1882-1953). Sutton argues whether or not this story ever was even told before contact which is precisely my argument here, that it most likely was not (Stahl, 541-542).

Works cited:

Bernikow, Louise. "Cinderella. “Crosscurrents of Children’s Literature. 1.J.D. Stahl. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.133-140. Print.

Hanlon, Tina L., Keyser, Elizabeth L., and Stahl, J.D. Crosscurrents in Children’s Literature: An Anthology of Texts and Criticisms. Oxford University P, 2007. Print.

Louie, Ai-Ling. Yeh-Shen: A Cinderella Story from China. New York: The Putnam Publishing Group, 1982. Print.

Martin, Rafe. The Rough-Faced Girl. New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1992. Print.