Chapter 3: Early Native American Poetry

so much depends

upon

a red wheel

barrow

glazed with rain

water

beside the white

chickens

            To start my post about early Native American poetry, I decided to share my all-time favorite poem by William Carlos Williams.  This poem frustrated so many of my friends in high school, yet I am as entranced, dumbfounded, and filled with excitement today as I was over a decade ago.

            I still cannot understand Williams’ intent, and I don’t think that I want to.  I tend to shy away from online analyses because I enjoy the mystery in trying to unravel the imagery.

            One of the reasons behind my adoration for this poem is because of the meaning I find each time I read it.  My understanding tends to vary depending on my mood, my surroundings and other factors.  Perhaps though, the most significant issue related to this poem is the memory I have of debating it with my mother.

            We are very similar my mother and I, but we sharply disagreed when it came to this poem.  I remember the satisfaction in flustering her with my interpretation and her walking away because for the first time, I felt like she viewed my as an intellectual adult.  Since then she has ‘schooled’ me multiple times on other poems and works of art, but the memory of that debate is what makes this poem special.  Early Native American poetry is rooted in meaning making events such as this but, “…no body of American literature receives less attention in our classrooms.” (29)

            Poems, like songs, carry spiritual, religious and cultural meanings. Particular tribal groups would create and use poems for specific purposes.  Goebel provides a list of categories that many of these poems fit into:

·       Religious songs

·       Hunting songs

·       Medicine songs

·       Dream songs

·       Lullabies

·       Gambling/game songs

·       Personal achievement songs

·       Love songs

·       War songs

·       Social dance songs

·       Honor songs (30)

The author then goes on to express various ideas on how to read Native American poetry for non-native classrooms. 

            As a teacher in a Jicarilla Apache school, introducing the meaning behind the poems may appear to be a task that carries little value as the students are well aware of what the poems are used for.

            An idea that I did take away from this section was an activity that looked into the elements found in Native American poetry.  Some of the elements listed below can be found independently or with others depending upon the meaning or the author’s intent.  The most common elements are:

·       Repetition and parallel structure

·       Concrete natural images

·       Conciseness of sentence length and length o song

·       Frequently reflect a spiritual commitment, even in humorous songs

·       Imply a tribal, public audience that already understands context

·       Avoid the personal intellectualizing of much European and American poetry (33).

            At this time, I must be completely honest.  Until this chapter, I was grossly unaware of culturally relevant poetry as a form of literature that could be used in my instruction; partly because I have little to no exposure to it and partly because of my ignorance to its existence.  The chapter ends with a quote that sums up my sheepish feelings, “If you have an idea in mind of what ‘Indian Literature’ is, I suggest you reconsider” – Wendy Rose (37)

Chapter 2 - First Encounters and the Language of Race

This chapter, as you can probably surmise from the title, deals with the ever controversial Christopher Columbus and his policy of eradication and subjugation. 

It’s true that his policies and the policies that followed directly influence my students today; however, I found that this chapter dealt more with the definition of ‘race’ and Columbus and his perception in society than impact on language and reading, so I have chosen not to spend too much time on it in this blog.  The notes I took from this section belong in a history blog more than a literacy-oriented web log.

The following chapter on Native American poetry is much more interesting and relevant, so I will focus more on that in the next posting.

Chapter 1 Teaching Native American Literature: Reflections and Responsibilities

In this chapter, Goebel presents a series of questions that all teachers must ask before they introduce Native American literature into their classroom.  The questions are grouped into sections such as, “Why do you want to teach Native American Literature?”, “How should I select appropriate Native American Literature for the classroom?”, and “What are my responsibilities in the classroom when teaching Native American Literature?”.

The most important piece I took from this chapter is the re emphasis on the idea that, “…educators need to do some serious self-reflection about their own motives and beliefs” (3).  If I were to start using Native texts just because my students are Jicarilla Apache, I would be way off the mark on what I could actually accomplish.  My motivations have always been rooted in exposing my students to the stories of their cultural ancestors as well as stories from other tribal groups in the area.

By introducing other tribes’ stories, a discussion could occur to show that though they are unique individuals growing up in Dulce, they are not alone on this reservation, and there are similar themes among the stories groups of people throughout the country.

An issue that I can see going forward with this book is its intended audience.  The author appears to be writing this guide for teachers of non-Native students, who want to introduce Native American literature into their classrooms.  In this first chapter, Goebel spent time reiterating the point that a teacher must first understand a culture before introducing their literature.  This is my 5th year in Dulce Elementary and I do not claim to be an expert on the cultural history on the tribe.  I do feel that through my interactions with the tribal elders and various community members that I may accurately align literature to the needs and beliefs of my students.

Introductions

     First, thank you for taking the time to read these entries.  I am looking forward to your comments, concerns, criticisms, whatever it is that you would like to share with me.  This is a blog that I have used for two previous courses.  I included a picture of the cover of the book as a guide point for you to know that anything below the picture is from another class.

     For the past five years, I have lived and worked on the Jicarilla Apache Reservation in Dulce, NM.  My first four years were spent as a first grade teacher and this year I have moved up to the 'big kids hallway' and am teaching third grade.  I am originally from Pittsburgh, PA and come from a family of Irish immigrants.  Though I have lived in the community for a number of years, I will always be a cultural outsider. 

     Part of my overreaching goals as a teacher is to try and include as much culturally relevant and appropriate materials into my reading instruction.  This has proved to be a difficult task to undertake.  As the author of my text Bruce A. Goebel states in the introduction, "...crossing cultures is not always easy" (xi).  It is difficult but I  feel that it is necessary.

     I chose this text in the hopes of gaining insight and understanding about how Native American literature can be viewed from an instructional standpoint not only for myself, but for y students own cultural understanding.

     As the reading teacher for three third grade classes, I have been struggling with meaning making this first 9 week period because we utilize what I consider to be inconsiderate texts (citation to follow).  Before I can even begin to introduce the Common Core skill of the instructional period, I must first activate background knowledge that doesn't always exist.

     It is my hope that at the end of this book I will have a better understanding of how to utilize Native texts  in my instruction as well as developing some tips and tricks as to introducing m students to the aesthetic side of reading.