Reading Notes: Native American Hero Tales, Part A

(Dreamcatcher: Wikimedia Commons)

I like the absurdity of the name “Unnatural Uncle.” I might give one of my characters a bizarre name as well.

It’s strange how the other family members just let Uncle kill the kids if they’re boys. They even lie to him about the next born child being a girl instead of trying to stop him. It’s a weird situation.

This is one of the weirdest plots I have read this semester. I don’t see why they would dress the boy as a girl rather than just stop the Uncle. It’s like the plot of weird comedy/horror movie.

In my retelling, I would have the boy plan something ahead of time to stop the Uncle instead of blindly doing everything the Uncle tells him to do when chopping wood.

It is kind of comical how the Uncle keeps getting outsmarted by the nephew. It’s like the Roadrunner and Wily Coyote. I still wish someone would just stop the Uncle though.

The Eagle people came out of nowhere, but I like it. It’s a weird twist for a weird story. I enjoyed the ending because the Uncle got what he deserved.

I feel bad for Grouse because you know he has a good heart since he doesn’t complain.

It’s kind of confusing why the people in the village would kill the Blue Jay and his friends if he were to lose the climbing match to the squirrel. It is an interesting image to picture though.

I like how Blue Jay is finding ways to win these challenges even though I don’t know why these challenges are happening.

I like how the Blue Jay and his friends learned a lesson at the end, but I don’t think I will be retelling this story. I was not a fan of the repetitive challenges. 

It was kind of weird how the story immediately says the granddaughter is a virgin. It just doesn’t make sense to me why this would be brought up.

I’m confused as to where the baby came from and why they just took care of him without asking any questions.

Overall, I was not a fan of Dug-From-Ground. The plot didn’t really make sense to me and I just didn’t like it. I will not be retelling this part.

I love the plot of huge animals fighting humanity. I can see myself having fun with this one.

I am curious as to why the other animals are helping him kill the Elk. I think a good plot twist would to have the animals deceive him instead.

Although the giant Eagles are killing humans, I felt kind of bad for the eaglets because they essentially help kill their parents. I like how they also don’t get killed though.

I might choose to retell this story. I might add some twists and humor into it though.

Bibliography: Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson (1929).