Reading Notes: Hero Tales, Part B

Story source: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson (1929).

The first reading of this part of the unit, Lodge-Boy and Thrown-Away, really caught my eye because it was, to an extent, one story. However, there are several individual stories that lie within this one project. The story begins with how the two twin brothers were separated at birth but then eventually reunited by their father. The mini-stories follow the same sort of pattern: the father warns them about a certain danger, the boys don't listen to him and go head first into the fire, and somehow they manage to escape unscathed. The boys themselves are rather intuitive but are also a little arrogant, as if they know that they'll get themselves out of whatever sticky situation they face. The language is similar to much of the readings from Part A: fairly casual, yet descriptive at the same time. That's the type of writing I strive for, and I definitely got some good insight from this unit as a whole. I breezed through the rest of the stories, but none of them had the same effect on me as that story did. For my story this week, I think I could write a few stories similar to these, but I'd like to throw a twist in the plot. I guess I'll have something to think about for tomorrow!

There's no way Lodge-Boy isn't a fan of these, right?

Reading Notes: Hero Tales, Part A

1Story source: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson (1929).

I really enjoyed reading this first part of the Hero Tales unit for several reasons. First of all, the stories flow well and are easy to follow, which kept me engaged the entire time. Second of all, the plotline for some of these is really unique. I was not expecting to read a story like The Jealous Uncle where the antagonist is out to kill his nephews. This is an unconventional theme, but the writing really makes you believe this could happen (although obviously not in the same setting). That story was probably my favorite one of this part of the reading unit simply because I enjoyed reading the different ways that the protagonist escaped his uncle's traps. There were also some elements in the story that represented unique aspects of Native American culture, such as the personification of the log and the eagle-skin. Another story I enjoyed was Dug-from-Ground. The idea of a special root being dug up and leading to a child rolling down the chimney is unorthodox as well, but the writing doesn't focus as much on that. Instead, just like the first story I mentioned, the tale revolves around the development of the protagonist and how he overcomes the challenges he faces.

A freshly-dug root, perhaps the one that caused the baby to be born.