1. American Literature Period 1 Monday, 29 August 2011 Daily Journal
Trickster Tales
Vocabulary List 4

2. Unit Objectives Focus for Today
Explore the key idea of villains
Analyze characteristics of a trickster tale
Build vocabulary and spelling skills

3. Daily Journal #5
Start new DJ set on a new page! Make sure you have DJ #, Date, Prompt, and Response.
List as many different types of villains you can think of that appeared in books, movies, TV, etc.
Which ones are mischievous? Which are evil?
Write a short essay (minimum 3 paragraphs: intro, body, conclusion) analyzing “Villains”. Answer the following:
What is a villain?
Which villains are more compelling than the hero? Why? Which traits specifically contribute to their appeal?
I will call on you to share answers after. Make sure you explained your answer.

4. Add to Notes
Trickster Tales- a type of folk tale that features an animal or human character who typically engages in deceit, violence, and magic.
Often trickster tales are mythic, explaining how some aspect of human nature or the natural world came to be.
Trickster characters take many forms:
Native American oral tradition: coyote or raven
African tales: hare or spider
Japan: fox
 No matter form trickster usually exhibits contradictory qualities (may be creative and destructive or wise and childish)

5. Literature Books pg 42
Silently read page 42 to learn about the woman who retold the trickster tale we are about to read, “Coyote and the Buffalo”.
Why did Mourning Dove (Christine Quintasket) become a novelist?
How does Mourning Dove’s writings help preserve her tribe’s culture?
Predict what you think the story will be about.
Read “Coyote and the Buffalo” on page 44.
Make a chart that lists the traits and behavior of the Coyote and of any other tricksters you notice in the story.
Coyote’s Traits and Behaviors
Other Tricksters and their Traits and Behaviors
Coyote is “foolish and greedy”, it is his fault there are no buffalo in Swah-netk’-qhu country.

6. “Coyote and the Buffalo” QUIZ
Put your Lit Books away.
Clear your desks of everything but a pen/cil and your notes.
On the same paper as your notes (you will probably need another piece of paper too) complete the essay questions.
Number them.

7. QUIZ:
Answer the following essay questions. Use examples from the text to support your answers.
5 paragraphs:
Trickster tales, like other forms of folk literature, offer readers insight into a society’s way of life. What information about the following aspects of Okanogan culture did you glean from this tale?
Traits or qualities the Okanogan admired as well as those they disapproved of
The traditional role of women in Okanogan society
Okanogan rituals and religious beliefs
3 paragraphs:
Trickster tales endure, in part simply because they are fun to read. But they also often serve to teach a lesson or moral. What does “Coyote and the Buffalo” teach or explain. Support your answer with specific examples from the text.

8. Vocabulary List 4
Write the definitions for each of the vocabulary words on List 4.
Test on Friday!