Oral Traditions of Native American Folk Tales: How the World Was Made

Being passed down by oral tradition, Native American folk tales may be altered slightly in text from their original forms. However, the main ideas and themes still persist through the hundreds of years lapsing between the conception of the story and actually writing it down. The original purposes of these stories were for entertainment, caution, to set social guidelines, etc. much like many children's stories in modern times. These kind of stories seem to be universal in all cultures. This shows that Entertainment is a very effective means of getting a point across, especially when dealing with a culture's youth.

In this particular story, How the World Was Made, the archetype method is used to warn children about an underworld found under springs at the bottom of mountains. I feel that this is a way to keep the children of the society from drowning in these springs. The story usefully employs this method as an explanation of common events and as a cautionary tale. Or, this same archetype could be symbolic. It could represent straying from the normal path of life. It keeps the citizens in line, all still in a form of entertainment, which, as I have said, is a very effective means of conveying a message about, well, anything.

Religion in a culture is necessary to answer questions such as "why?" or "how?". People are naturally inquisitive. They need answers to questions, and it is society's duty to produce these answers. This story answers why for many things in nature and human life. It also answers how the world will end:

"When the world grows old and worn out, the people will die and the cords will break and let the earth sink down into the ocean, and all will be water again. The Indians are afraid of this."

Being given the answer to this "how?", I feel that a society can continue on, not thinking of the "when?". The "when?" just becomes an afterthought after having one of the other big questions answered. Thus the role of religion in a society has been accomplished.

Symbolism in John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath"

John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath is a symbolic work of art that has been praised through history as an accurate depiction of the dust bowl period and how it affected the "Okies", or families forced from their homes to California in search of work and food. Whether the blatantly obvious or the subtle form of symbolism, the novel employs this technique very effectively throughout the novel.

One of the more subtle symbolic devices is the famous turtle crossing the road. This ordinary turtle encounters struggles and obstacles as it tries to get to whatever its goal is. This turtle is much like all of the Okies trying to get to California. Steinbeck does not really say where the turtle is going. I believe that this shows how the Okies didn't really know where they were going. They didn't know for certain if they would be able to get jobs once out on the west coast, yet they kept on striving to get there. They also had to face obstacles: small and large. Small obstacles, a bump in the road, a car breakdown. Large obstacles, a car out to turn you into roadkill, a police officer out to run the Okies out of the country.

Throughout the novel, several characters swerve while driving to run over various types of animals. I feel that this symbolizes any of the oppressors of the Okies. It seemed as if, in both situations, the more powerful of the two went out of its way to harm the other party. It seemed ironic how the Okies thought nothing of it even though almost the exact same thing was being done to them in a figurative sense.

One of the more obvious examples of symbolism is Steinbeck's characterization of the Bank as a monster full of hunger, or greed. This whole chapter was ingenious and effective for making its point. The following passage pretty much sums up the whole idea.

"It's not us, it's the bank. A bank isn't like a man. Or an owner with fifty thousand acres, he isn't like a man either. That's the monster."

A monster is a perfect example of greed and power. I felt that this piece of symbolism was very well executed and effective. This style of generalization and symbolism was used throughout the novel (much to my own pleasure).

Lastly, in the end of the book, Rose of Sharon breast feeds the man in the barn. I feel that this symbolizes how the migrants had been turned into savages and animals through all of their ordeals. They had no shame anymore. They did just what they needed to survive. However, it also showed how they had banded together. By the end of the book, they thought of others more than themselves.