Week 9 Reading Diary

Native American Hero Tales

1. The Jealous Uncle - First, I want to know how everyone is even okay with the Uncle killing the two boys! Does he have some sort of power over everyone? Is it part of the culture that what the man does and says goes no matter what? I am really curious about that... I'm also confused by how the log opened its mouth. Do they believe that trees are really alive or that there are spirits or does this story actually have a fantasy side?
2. The Jealous Uncle (cont.) - I have no idea why but I really like this story! I want to know what the wife or nephew will end up doing to the Uncle or if the Uncle will just explode when the boy returns again. I'm also really interested to see what the Uncle has planned next!
3. The Jealous Uncle (end) - So it took me a while to realize that the boy had landed in Eagle land, he wasn't born there originally. I think it is really cool how they can wear eagle skins and then become eagles! I am SO glad he got revenge on the Uncle! he deserved it!
4. Bluejay and His Companions - They say men but I wonder if they were actually birds being personified?  I thought that the story would go back to Grouse after he tricked the five others. And now I think it is really interesting that they are on an island and there is a ruling squirrel. I am curious to see where the story goes!
5. Bluejay and His Companions (cont.) - I feel like Bluejay and his companions shouldn't be able to get away with deceiving everyone! I know that they only manage to get away with their lives, which makes it a little better, but still. I really just don't like Bluejay. He is a liar and mean and I do not like him! I do really like his master though. I think it is funny that they did learn their lesson and Grouse now gets the biggest, fattest seal!
6. Dug-from-Ground - I think the fact that they have to point out that the granddaughter is a virgin means that that will come into play later on in the story. If it doesn't, I think it is silly that they put it in there. I do not understand this story at all... Where did the baby come from? What was the significance of the double stalk? Why wouldn't the mother look the boy in face? Where did the mother go? Why did he have to kill a white deer? Who did the boy go to visit? This story leaves so many questions unanswered!
7. Dug-from-Ground (cont.) - I still have no idea what is going on... I don't know what shinny is, I can't tell what is going on or where these new characters came from...
8. The Attack on the Giant Elk and the Great Eagle - Four seems to be a very prevalent number in this story. The boy took four days to grow to manhood, fours strides to reach the elk, tried four times to get into the lizard coat and four times to get into the gopher hole, four times he drew his bow to shoot the heart of the Elk. I also wonder if the different colored spiders are significant in any way.
*9. The Attack on the Giant Elk and the Great Eagle (cont.) - Again with the four! Four strides to reach the Eagle's home, facing each four points (at this point I wonder if the 'four' theme has to do with the cardinal directions), the bat tried to replenish her feathers four times, I think there were four eagles altogether. I am really curious as to why the number four is so important.
10. Lodge-Boy and Thrown-Away - This story is really interesting. I don't know if I quite understand all of it but it is definitely entertaining! I think it is neat how the boy who was thrown in the river turned into and otter-boy and then they used incense to turn him back into a human. The one thing I am curious about it how long the boys were hiding. I know I can't think about this logically, I mean there was an otter-boy, but I wonder how long the boys were on their own before they came out and talked to their dad.
11. Lodge-Boy and Thrown-Away (cont.) - I really like how the boys grew up to be sort of the heroes of their land. They went and killed all of the bad things. I wonder if the father kept telling them about all of the bad things in order to get them to go and kill them. Otherwise, why would he keep telling them about the things if he knew they were going to go after it anyway!
12. The Son-in-Law Tests - This story reminds me of The Jealous Uncle stories, when the uncle keeps trying to do away with the new nephew, in this case the new husband, and each time the man outsmarts him and is victorious in the end. I also notice the motif about how when the people put on the bird wings or skin, they either turn into the bird or can at least fly.
13. The Jealous Father - And this story reminds me more of Bluejay and his Companions. He was sent out because he angered someone and as he is trying to get home he is still tricking those who are trying to help him. Though Bluejay only tricked the people to stay alive, he did trick them.
14. The Jealous Father (cont.) - So this story follows Bluejay and his Companions pretty closely but the end is different. I wonder if they chose the robin and whiskeyjack for any particular reason. i also wonder if that was the creation story of those two birds.
15. Dirty-Boy - I wonder why they made Sun not be able to walk when he turned into the boy. Maybe it is the beauty and the beast idea? Sun and Star are trying to test the chief to look past their hideousness and see that Sun was the rightful winner of the competitions.
16. Dirty-Boy (cont.) - I kind of liked how they saved the fact that only one daughter could marry the brother, Sun. I know that sometimes they have two wives per husband, but not very often so I thought it would be odd if he had two. At the very beginning I was wondering if they were going to try and marry one of the daughters to Star, the sister and I thought, "Well that will be new..." But they fixed that!