Native American Literature Tales of Heroes and Tricksters Explain who transformed the world into its present state and how For example the Native American trickster tale Coyote Steals Fire explains how man first obtained fire ID: 252587
Download Presentation The PPT/PDF document "The Trickster Character" is the property of its rightful owner. Permission is granted to download and print the materials on this web site for personal, non-commercial use only, and to display it on your personal computer provided you do not modify the materials and that you retain all copyright notices contained in the materials. By downloading content from our website, you accept the terms of this agreement.
Slide1
The Trickster Character
Native American LiteratureSlide2
Tales of Heroes and Tricksters
Explain who transformed the world into its present state and how
.
For example, the Native American trickster tale, “Coyote Steals Fire,” explains how man first obtained fire.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_CKP-82yb4&feature=related
Usually
contain aspects of the supernatural.Slide3
What is a trickster?
Tricksters are archetypal, almost always male, characters who appear in the myths of many different cultures.
As their name suggests, tricksters love to play tricks on other gods, humans, and animals.
But perhaps the best definition of a trickster is the one given by Lewis Hyde: "trickster is a boundary-crosser."
By that, he means that the trickster crosses both physical and social boundaries-- the trickster is often a traveler, and he often breaks societal rules.Slide4
Crossing the Line
Tricksters cross lines, breaking or blurring connections and distinctions between "right and wrong, sacred and profane, clean and dirty, male and female, young and old, living and dead" (Hyde 7).
The trickster often changes shape (turning into an animal, for example) to cross between worlds.
In his role as boundary-crosser, the trickster sometimes becomes the messenger of the gods or other beings.Slide5
Coyote
Coyote
is a major mythological figure for most Native American tribes, especially those west of the Mississippi.
Like real coyotes, mythological coyotes are usually notable for their crafty intelligence, stealth, and voracious appetite.
However, American Indian coyote characters vary widely from tribe to tribe. POSITIVE CHARACTERISTICS-In some Native American coyote myths, Coyote is a hero who creates, teaches, and helps humans
by using his intelligence, courage, and wits.
NEGATIVE CHARACTERISTICS-In
others, he is a sort of antihero who demonstrates the dangers of negative behaviors like greed, recklessness, and arrogance.
In most native coyote stories, he is some sort of
combination.
H
e is a comic trickster character, whose lack of wisdom gets him into trouble while his cleverness gets him back out.