Table Of ContentREADING NATIVE AMERICAN
LITERATURE
Native American literature explores divides between public and private cultures,
ethnicitiesandexperience.Inthisvolume,JosephCoulombearguesthatNative
American writers use diverse narrative strategies to engage with readers and
are “writing for connection” with both Native and non-Native audiences.
Beginning with a historical overview of Native American Literature, this
book presents focused readings of key texts including:
(cid:1) N.ScottMomaday’sHouseMade ofDawn
(cid:1) LeslieMarmon Silko’sCeremony
(cid:1) GeraldVizenor’sBearheart
(cid:1) JamesWelch’sFool’sCrow
(cid:1) ShermanAlexie’sTheLoneRangerandTontoFistfight inHeaven
(cid:1) LindaHogan’sPower.
Suggesting new ways towards a sensitive engagement with tribal cultures,
this book provides not only acomprehensive introduction toNative American
Literature but also a critical framework through which it may be read.
Joseph L. Coulombe is Associate Professor of English at Rowan University,
US. He is the author of Mark Twain and the American West (2003) and has
published articles on Mark Twain, Edith Wharton, Walt Whitman, Sherman
Alexie, James Welch, and Emerson Bennett.
READING NATIVE AMERICAN
LITERATURE
Joseph L. Coulombe
Firstedition published2011
byRoutledge
2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,Oxon,OX144RN
Simultaneouslypublished intheUSAandCanada byRoutledge
270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2011.
To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.
© 2011 Joseph L. Coulombe
TherightofJosephL.Coulombe tobeidentifiedasauthorofthisworkhasbeen
assertedby himinaccordancewithsections 77and78ofthe Copyright,Designsand
PatentsAct1988.
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbook maybereprinted orreproduced orutilisedin
any formorbyany electronic, mechanical,orothermeans,nowknownorhereafter
invented,including photocopyingandrecording, orinany informationstorage or
retrievalsystem,withoutpermission inwritingfromthepublishers.
British LibraryCataloguinginPublicationData
Acataloguerecordforthisbook isavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
LibraryofCongressCatalogingin PublicationData
Coulombe,JosephL.,1966-
ReadingNativeAmericanliterature /Joseph L.Coulombe.–1sted.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical referencesandindex.
1. American literature – Indian authors – History and criticism. 2. Indians
ofNorthAmerica– Intellectuallife. 3.Indians inliterature.I.Title.
PS153.I52C59 2011
810.9’ 897 – dc22
2010029326
ISBN 0-203-83290-6 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 13: 978-0-415-57942-1 (hbk)
ISBN 13: 978-0-415-57943-8 (pbk)
ISBN 13: 978-0-203-83290-5 (ebk)
For my children,
Miles, Jeremy, and Trevor.
And for their generation.
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements x
Permissions xi
Introduction: NativeAmerican literaryoutreach andtheNon-nativereader 1
Engagingcommunity 3
Textualparametersfor readers 6
Readingtolearn(nottoprofess) 8
Individualmethodsandsharedgoals 10
Criticalmethodology 13
Thepoweroffiction 15
1 Followingthetracks: historyand contextofNativewriting 18
Invasionandloss 19
Adaptingtochange,writing forchange 21
Trailofbrokentreaties 22
Newpolicies,oldproblems 25
Recoveringfromloss,andcontinuingtheoral tradition 29
Fiction,poetry,andself-definition 31
Asnapshot ofcontemporary NativeAmerica 34
2 Nothing butwords:fromconfrontationtoconnectioninN.Scott
Momaday’sHouseMadeofDawn 36
Observationversus experience 37
AngelaandAbel: connectionanddisconnection 40
Abel’sprogressandAngela’srevelation 42
Words,language, andmeaning 46
VIII CONTENTS
Violence, whiteness,andevil 48
Confrontation andaffirmation 51
Atimelesschallengeandthereader 52
Eternity,nothing,andshared truths 55
3 Revitalizingtheoriginal clan:participantreadersin
LeslieMarmonSilko’sCeremony 57
Clanstoriesandthereader 58
Theperformative poweroflanguage 61
Connectionandcontext 63
Racialpolitics 66
Fightingfragmentation andhatred 70
Re-unitingthepeople 72
Individualsuccessandhuman promise 75
4 Individualism vs.separation: imaginingtheselftofosterunity
viaGeraldVizenor’sBearheart 77
Textandreader 78
Thedangersoflanguage 80
Thepowerofimagination 82
Collaboration andindividual interpretation 84
Connection, non-conformity,andtranscendence 86
Dependence andself-destruction 89
Tribalismversus individualism 92
5 Writingforconnection: cross-culturalunderstanding in
JamesWelch’shistoricalfiction 96
Writinghistoryasresistance 97
Translating theunfamiliar 100
Teachingreaderswith culturalconnections 102
Ambiguityandinterpretation 106
Thenormal andthenegative 109
Humorasconnection 112
Communityversus individual 113
6 Theapproximate size ofhisfavoritehumor:ShermanAlexie’scomic
connectionsand disconnectionsinTheLoneRangerand Tonto
FistfightinHeaven 116
Theorizingthefrontier ofhumor 117
Story-tellinganditsequivocal potential 120
Humorasprotection 122
Humorasself-destructive avoidance 124
Tradition, change,andcontext 127
Humorasintra-community connection 129
Humorascross-culturaloutreach 132
Angerandjoy 135
7 Stitchingthegap:believingvs.knowinginLinda Hogan’sPower 139
Narrativeandinterpretive processes 140
Traditionandrenewal 142
CONTENTS IX
Stormasmetaphor 144
Knowledge versusbelief 145
Witness 147
Trialanderror 149
Futureconnectionandcommunity 151
Effortandachievement 152
Thehealing powerofwords 155
Notes 157
Bibliography 169
Index 183
