English
314: American Indian Literature (Fall
2003)
Instructor:
Prof. David Carlson Section
# 01
E-mail: dajcarls@csusb.edu Days: MWF
10:40-11:50
Office: UH 301.40 Room:
UH 257
Office Hours: MWF 2:30-4:00 and by appt. Office
Phone: 880-7388
Course Texts:
Keith Basso Wisdom Sits in Places
Louise
Erdrich Tracks
Joy Harjo She Had Some Horses
N. Scott Momaday House Made of Dawn
Simon Ortiz From
Sand Creek
Paul Radin The
Trickster: A Study in American Indian Mythology
Leslie Marmon Silko Ceremony
A brief course packet available on reserve
in the Pfau Library
Conceptions Behind Course: As Jarold
Ramsey points out in his essay ATradition and
Individual Talents in Modern Indian Writing,@
students of American Indian literature face a set of unique challenges. On the one hand, American Indian written
literature historically has been a product of colonial contact and, as such,
has been shaped by Aexternal@ cultural
and political forces. On the other hand,
Indian writers frequently have continued to incorporate elements from their
traditional cultures into their work as a way of resisting assimilation and/or
cultural extermination. Learning to read
American Indian writing, then, requires us to develop an appreciation of the
complex interplay between social and political forces, the traditions and
customs of particular nations, and the imaginations of individual writers. In this course, students will work to develop
such sophisticated interpretive skills by tracing the incorporation and
re-articulation in written texts of elements from traditional Indian
culture. We open with a general
consideration of the nature of oral literature and the challenges facing non-Indian
readers in studying such materials.
Building on this foundation, we will then try to develop a basic
understanding of (1) a mythic archetype [the trickster], (2) an issue of
religious belief [the role of ceremonial practice in healing and identity
formation], and (3) the adaptability of the oral tradition [reflected in
contemporary American Indian poetry].
Using anthropological and oral materials as background, we will consider
how several major Native American writers have combined old and new to develop
innovative forms of expression.
To
avoid making essentializing claims about American Indian peoples, the first
two-thirds of course have been structured around two roughly drawn geographic Aculture-zones.@ In dealing with the trickster-figure, our
focus will be on the Woodland cultures of the Great Lakes region. Students will study Winnebago trickster tales
and then consider how two important contemporary Anishinabe authors, Louise
Erdrich and Gerald Vizenor, have made use of the trickster archetype in their
fiction. In the second unit we will turn
our attention to the Southwest, where students will have the opportunity to
study a complete ceremony (The Navajo Night Chant). Our examination of ceremonialism will help
set up subsequent discussions of two major novels by N. Scott Momaday
(Kiowa/Cherokee) and Leslie Marmon Silko (Laguna Pueblo). The final unit, dealing with the poetry of
Joy Harjo (Muskogee Creek) and Simon Ortiz (Acomo Pueblo), reflects these
authors= broad engagement with American Indian history and
culture.
Course Policies:
Attendance: Attendance in class and participation in discussion
are crucial parts of this course. As
such, each student will be allowed no more than three absences during the
semester without suffering a penalty on his or her final grade. For each absence beyond three, one-third of a
letter grade will be deducted off the student=s final average for the class.
Tardiness: Students who arrive late to class will be marked
tardy. Three tardies will add up to an
absence.
Late work: Unless prior arrangements have been made with the
instructor (owing to extra-ordinary circumstances), late work will not
be accepted. Quizzes and short
assignments also cannot be made up.
Plagiarism: Plagiarism is the unacknowledged use of another
person=s words or ideas.
It constitutes a serious breach of the California State University Code
of Student Ethics. Everything that a
student turns in with his or her name on it must be his or her own work. Depending upon the severity of the case,
plagiarism can result in failure for the assignment in question or for the
entire course.
Course Requirements: Successful completion of this course requires the
completion of all assignments. The grade
breakdown is as follows:
Mid-Term Examination 20%
One Essay (8-10 pages) 35%
A final examination 25%
Five Sets of Reading Questions* 10%
Participation (includes quiz average) 10%
* Reading Questions: Once every two weeks, each
student will be required to turn in typewritten responses to a series of
questions on the readings for one class session. At the beginning of each two week period, I
will provide a list of questions for the next series of classes. Students may choose the day on which they
would like to turn in their responses.
Students should also be prepared to share their responses in class as a
way of stimulating discussion. (These
questions may also provide useful study materials in preparing for the exams.)
Schedule of Readings and
Assignments
Introduction: Theoretical
Overview/The Study of American Indian Traditional Literature
Week One: Fri
9/26 Introduction to Course/Overview of Requirements
Week Two: Mon
9/29 Reading Traditional/Oral Materials I
Dennis Tedlock AThe Spoken Word and the Work of
Interpretation in American Indian
Religion@
(CP)
Wed 10/1 Reading Traditional/Oral Materials II
Keith Basso Wisdom
Sits in Places 1-35
(skim
Chapter 2)
Fri 10/3 Reading Traditional/Oral Materials III
Keith Basso Wisdom
Sits in Places 105-149
(skim
Chapter 3)
Unit One: Mythic
Archetypes in American Indian LiteratureBThe Woodlands Trickster
Week Three:
Mon 10/6 The TricksterBAnthropological and Psychological Views
Paul Radin The
Trickster 132-154; 111-119
Wed 10/8 The
Winnebago Trickster Cycle
Paul Radin The
Trickster Tales 1-25
Fri 10/10 The
Winnebago Trickster Cycle
Paul Radin The
Trickster Tales 26-49
Kathleen A. Danker ABecause of This I Am Called the
Foolish
One@ (CP)
Week Four: Mon
10/13 The Trickster in Fiction I
Louise Erdrich Tracks
1-61
Wed 10/15 The
Trickster in Fiction II
Louise Erdrich Tracks
62-130
Fri 10/17 The
Trickster in Fiction III
Louise Erdrich Tracks
131-191
Week Five: Mon
10/20 The Trickster in Fiction IV
Louise Erdrich Tracks
192-226
Wed 10/22 Gerald
Vizenor AAlmost
Browne,@ AFeral Lasers@
(CP)
Fri
10/24 Mid-Term Examination
Unit Two: Ceremonialism in
American Indian LiteratureB Momaday and Silko
Week Six: Mon
10/27 A Navajo Ceremony
John Bierhorst, trans. The
Navajo Night Chant (CP)
Wed 10/29 Ceremonialism
in Fiction I
N. Scott Momaday House
Made of Dawn 5-54
Fri 10/31 Ceremonialism
in Fiction II
N. Scott Momaday House
Made of Dawn 55-102
Week Seven: Mon
11/3 Ceremonialism in Fiction III
N. Scott Momaday House Made of Dawn 102-152
Wed 11/5 Ceremonialism
in Fiction IV
N. Scott Momaday House
Made of Dawn 152-198
Fri 11/7 Ceremonialism
in Fiction V
Leslie Marmon Silko Ceremony
1-63
Week Eight: Mon
11/10 Ceremonialism in Fiction VI
Leslie Marmon Silko Ceremony
63-138
Wed 11/12 Ceremonialism
in Fiction VII
Leslie Marmon Silko Ceremony
138-201
Fri
11/14 Ceremonialism in Fiction
VIII
Leslie Marmon Silko Ceremony
201-262
Unit Three: Orality, Ceremony, and Memory in Contemporary
PoetryB Harjo and Ortiz
Week Nine:
Mon 11/17 Joy Harjo She Had Some
Horses 1-23
Wed 11/19 Harjo She
Had Some Horses 24-46
Fri 11/21 Harjo She
Had Some Horses 49-74
Week Ten: Mon
11/24 Linda Hogan (Video of Reading)
Wed 11/26 Simon
Ortiz From
Sand Creek 6-31
Fri 11/28 ThanksgivingB No Class
Week Eleven: Mon 12/1 Ortiz From
Sand Creek 32-65
Wed 12/3 Ortiz From
Sand Creek 66-95
Fri 12/5 Review
for Exam
Long
Essay Due in class
The
Final Examination will be on December 12.