Saturday, February 27, 2010
Poetry
Momaday
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Link
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Way to Rainy Mountain
- I would think that one of the reasons, if there is more than one, is for Momaday to preserve the story telling tradition and attempt to put it into written words, thus reaching more people and sharing the Kiowas tradition. IN his preface, he writes that in the beginning was the word and it was spoken. He writes about reading it outloud and I think it is indeed very interesting to read silently the book and then read it out loud as a story.
- What are the materials from which the book is constructed, and from where do they originate.I understand that the stories, materials constructing the book are from his father and the voice of Kiowa oral tradition, another of the materials come from history and historic recollections, and the other materials come from the author and his recollection, thoughts, experiences.
N. Scott Momaday lecture
Monday, February 15, 2010
Ceremony after thoughts
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Ceremony/end
Monday, February 8, 2010
Alcohol and "good old days"
It seems that the protagonists in the novel use alcohol as a way to "handle" the demons haunting them, namely war remembrances, as many veterans have been doing. Not only veterans but also in this novel as in the previous one, Native Americans who feel that they lost their identity as Native Americans, their land, culture, lifestyle and who have tied into "white lifestyle".
Drinking in Silko as well as in Erdrich seems to be also linked to a way to "deal" or not know how to deal with racism from Whites towards Native American.
We see also, on page 39, for instance that Tayo, even while he is drinking is aware of the senselessness of it all, and of the effect that alcohol has on him as well as his friends. He says: “ ..trying to bring back that old feeling, that feeling they belonged to America the way they felt during the war.” Silko touches also on the issue of losing the land taken by white people and the complexity of the issue: “…they blamed themselves just like they blame themselves for losing the land the white people took. They never thought to blame white people for any of it; they wanted white people for their friends.”
Saturday, February 6, 2010
colors, flashbacks, time
For instance, on page 13, we read about the current state of Tayo, where he lives, dry and desolate. Silko mentions white hairs growing out of the mule's lips.
She then brings the reader back to Tayo in the hospital. He describes himself as white smoke. He talks about being invisible, while Silko still brings colors and a misty quality to her description of white smoke, invisibility and even to the brightness of the location.
She uses flashbacks to the jungle and describes poignantly how Tayo feels sick ongoingly.
She brings us back to the present with Harley and the vibrant colors of the SouthWest. She brings us back to the way Tayo and Harley "deal" with their PSTD, attempting to go to bars and drink.