1. NATIVE AMERICAN LITERATURE Ms. Kucinski English II

2. Notes for Native American Literature Native American literature, also called Indian literature or American Indian literature, is the traditional oral and written literatures of the Natives of America. These include ancient hieroglyphic and pictographic writings of Middle America as well as an extensive set of folktales, myths, and oral histories that were transmitted for centuries by storytellers and that live on in the language works of many contemporary American Indian writers.American Indian

3. The Five Themes of Native American Literature 1. Substance Experience: *Stories that relate to the cycle of life -Planting -Hunting -Fishing -Life -Death

4. 2. Origin and Emergence *Stories that typically dramatize the tribal explanation of the origin of the earth and its people. Explains how different tribes believe the earth and man were created.

5. 3. Historical Narratives *Tribe records that explain the movements of the tribe, and the colonization of the Europeans.

6. 4. Trickster Tales * A tale in which the main character, which takes on animal form such as– a coyote, raven, or rabbit, constantly tries to outsmart or outwit other characters.

7. 5. Oral Traditions * A story that is passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth