Prof. Gordon Sayre

Email: gsayre@oregon.uoregon.edu

Literature by Native American authors has grown in popularity since the publication of N. Scott Momaday’s The Way to Rainy Mountain (1969) and House Made of Dawn (1968) which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Today some of the most exciting young writers of novels and poetry, such as Sherman Alexie, are Native authors. The novels by Alexie and Louise Erdrich that we will read combine the styles and techniques of twentieth-century literature in English with expressions of Native oral traditions. To really understand these texts, we cannot simply read them as we might read novels in other English courses; we will need to learn about history, cultural contexts, and oral traditions of native peoples. What may appear to be new voices in literature actually embody philosophies and wisdom which dates back centuries. In our first book, we will see how Momaday combines the myth and traditions of the Kiowa with the tribe’s recent history, and with his own experience, a project of identity recovery which also inspires many other authors.

It is often assumed that American Indians had no written languages. This is not true. Studying the Mayan creation story Popol Vuh and looking at carved texts more than 1500 years old will help us appreciate the radically different world view of an indigenous American culture, and what the implications of these differences for a literature might be.

Because North America is home to a great variety of indigenous cultures, we can’t expect to learn about them all. The works I have chosen after the Popol Vuh are by writers from from the Salish and Spokane tribes of Idaho and Montana, and the Ojibway of the Northern Plains and Canadian shield. We will see in three twentieth-century novels how native writers try to resist monolithic stereotypes about Indians, and preserve their cultures and families amid the discrimination and injustices of modern America.

The term is short, and our class meetings are limited at twice per week. Much of the reading in the first half of the term will be unfamiliar and difficult, and in the second half the pace of the assignments is fast, at roughly 100 pages per class. To get the most from this course, it is imperative that you do all of the assigned reading before class, and come prepared with questions and comments about the assignnments. Unannounced quizzes will occasionally test you on this preparation.

Books: Available at Mother Kali’s Bookstore, 720 E. 13th Ave.

N. Scott Momaday, The Way to Rainy Mountain (1969) U New Mexico Press

Dennis Tedlock, trans., Popol Vuh Touchstone

John Tanner, The Falcon (1830) Penguin

Louise Erdrich, Tracks (1988) Harper Collins

D’arcy McNickle, The Surrounded (1936) U New Mexico Press

Sherman Alexie, Reservation Blues (1995) Warner

Readings on Library Reserve:

Several short reading assignments have been placed on e-reserve.

You can access these through the Knight library web page; go to the library homepage at

<http://libweb.uoregon.edu/index.php> and click on "Course Reserves." To enter the internet reserves you will need to enter the username <fall02> and the password is <down>.

Blackboard

This course is supplemented by an on-line resource called Blackboard, found at <http://blackboard.uoregon.edu> This service is no substitute for coming to class, but using it you can check on the assignments and schedule, get paper topics, and participate in the on-line discussion board (click on the "communication" button to get there).

Each of you has been assigned a username and password that will enable you to log on to the site. You should have received these in an e-mail message dated Thurdsay, Sept. 26th. Your password is contained in that message, as is your username, which is usually the same as your gladstone account.

If you need help with your password or with using Blackboard, go to the Knight Library ITC.

There will be two major papers of 4-5 pages due November 7 and December 11. Each is worth 20% of the grade.

There will also be four shorter written assignments during the term, together worth 20% of the total grade.

As you are writing, please refer to the double-sided handout with my requirements and advice for papers. I expect all papers to be proof-read and free of errors. I encourage you to meet with me to go over your drafts or ideas, before the date the paper is due. No late papers will be accepted, and no make-up assignments will be available.

In-class quizzes and writing assignments may occur in any class period. Combined with participation, this will account for 20% of your grade. Participation may be in the form of class discussion, or contributions to the discussion board on the blackboard site.

Final Exam, at 8 am on Friday, December 13th, is also worth 20% of the grade.

I will be taking attendance by the method of a sign-in sheet that will circulate during each class session. Please sign your full name to verify your presence. Absences should be limited to two classes, as there are only 19 meetings in the entire term. Those missing more than two will be penalized on their final grade. Please don't share with me excuses, save those in writing from a doctor or from the dean.

All work submitted must be your own and must be written exclusively for this class. The use of sources must be properly documented. Quotations without documentation, or the use of papers written by others or for other classes, may constitute plagiarism. See "Standards of Conduct" art. 1 in the Schedule of Classes for information about penalties for plagiarism.

10/1 Introduction: Native American Literature and the Oral Tradition. Discuss stories from Warm Springs about Oregon landscape, watch part of a film of Momaday reading at the U of O.

10/3 The Way to Rainy Mountain

10/8 Introduction to Mayan literature and the Popol Vuh: time and numbers

Read: Popol Vuh Parts One and Two (pp. 63-88), Tedlock’s introduction (pp 15-30), and information about the Maya calendar (pp 205-209). Also, on e-reserve, the excerpt from A Forest of Kings pp 78-84 about the Mayan calendar.

10/10 The story of Hunapuh and Xbalanque; watch first part of animated film version

Read: Popol Vuh Part Three (pp 91-142)

10/15 Mayan writing and the Popol Vuh: watch remainder of film version

Read: Popol Vuh Part Four (pp145-175) and excerpt from A Forest of Kings, pp 50-55, on e-reserve, about Mayan writing.

10/17 Conclusion of Popol Vuh and Mayan poetics; watch video about Maya archeology

Read: Popol Vuh Part Five (pp179-198), and Iroquois creation story on e-reserve

Short paper on creation myths due

10/22 John Tanner,The Falcon.

Read: Chapter 1-6 (pp 1-83) and excerpt from Peter Jones on e-reserve

10/24 The Falcon

Read: Chapters 7-8 (pp 84-131) & "Song for Beaver hunting and the Metai" on e-reserve

10/29 The Falcon

Read: Chapters 9-11 (pp 132-198) Short paper on John Tanner due

10/31 The Falcon Chapters 12-15 (pp199-280)

11/5 Tracks Chapters 1-4 and Erdrich’s poem "Old Man Potchikoo" on e-reserve

11/7 Tracks Chapters 5-6 First Major Paper Due

11/12 Tracks Chapters 7-9 and Maria Campbell "The Little People" on e-reserve

11/14 The Surrounded Chapters 1-9

11/19 The Surrounded Chapters 10-22 Short paper on Surrounded due

11/26 Sherman Alexie, Reservation Blues and a visit from special guest

Read: Chapters 1-3 (pp1-91) and story by special guest (handout)

12/3 Reservation Blues and watch video: "White Shamans and Plastic Medecine Men"

Read: Chapters 4-6 (pp92-195)

12/5 Reservation Blues Chapters 7-10 (pp196-306)

12/11 Second Major Paper Due by 5 pm in my office, 521 plc