Myths and Legends of the Sioux (Large Print Edition)

Poŝlibro, 130 paĝoj

Lingvo: English

Eldonita je 30-a de septembro 2007 de BiblioBazaar.

ISBN:: 978-1-4264-1082-6

(1 recenzo)

Marie L. McLaughlin, in writing Myths and Legends of the Sioux, aimed to create a written account of the many oral myths and legends that have been passed down by the Sioux people for hundreds of years, in order to guard against their loss to history.

Containing nearly 40 tales, McLaughlin has assembled a robust collection of Sioux legends. Most of these stories are quite brief, with some chalking in at less than two pages. As with all good fables, the majority of these stories contain a fairly simple message. There is the story The Rabbit and the Elk, a brief tale about an elk tricking a rabbit into thinking it had been caught, which is a classic "don't count your chickens until they've hatched" story. There is also the tale The Artichoke and the Muskrat, a story which carries the message of respecting the differences between people. The legends …

Marie L. McLaughlin, in writing Myths and Legends of the Sioux, aimed to create a written account of the many oral myths and legends that have been passed down by the Sioux people for hundreds of years, in order to guard against their loss to history.

Containing nearly 40 tales, McLaughlin has assembled a robust collection of Sioux legends. Most of these stories are quite brief, with some chalking in at less than two pages. As with all good fables, the majority of these stories contain a fairly simple message. There is the story The Rabbit and the Elk, a brief tale about an elk tricking a rabbit into thinking it had been caught, which is a classic "don't count your chickens until they've hatched" story. There is also the tale The Artichoke and the Muskrat, a story which carries the message of respecting the differences between people. The legends included in this collection all proceed in a similar fashion and carry similarly simple yet important messages about how best to live life and treat others.

The myths and legends included in this collection do not serve only to teach life lessons, but also offer valuable insight into the beliefs and priorities of the Sioux people. A profound respect for nature and its creatures is apparent throughout McLaughlin's book, and one cannot help but admire this aspect of the Sioux.

Whether being read to children as bedtime stories, or being examined by a scholar for insight into the Sioux people, Myths and Legends of the Sioux is a valuable collection. McLaughlin's book is enjoyable on a number of levels, and is thus highly recommended to all fans of myths, legends and fairy tales.

9 eldonoj

Stephanie Jane recenzis Myths and Legends of the Sioux (Large Print Edition) de Marie L. McLaughlin

A good collection

3 steloj

I received a copy of Myths And Legends of The Sioux by Marie McLaughlin when it was the ForgottenBooks daily free download. As the book was originally published in 1916 I am including it as my 1910s read for the Goodreads / Bookcrossing Decade Challenge.

Marie McLaughlin had a Sioux grandmother and spent much of her life living amongst the remaining Indians after they were forced into reservations. She spoke the Sioux language and recorded the tales in this collection directly from the tribal elders, understanding that their community, culture and oral tradition would soon be lost to the world. I did find the tone of her introductory essay rather patronising as she describes the Sioux as primitive and childlike, dismissing their achievements and history. Ironically such a lifestyle, in tune with nature instead of wilfully destroying it, is now seen as perhaps they only way for us all to …

I received a copy of Myths And Legends of The Sioux by Marie McLaughlin when it was the ForgottenBooks daily free download. As the book was originally published in 1916 I am including it as my 1910s read for the Goodreads / Bookcrossing Decade Challenge.

Marie McLaughlin had a Sioux grandmother and spent much of her life living amongst the remaining Indians after they were forced into reservations. She spoke the Sioux language and recorded the tales in this collection directly from the tribal elders, understanding that their community, culture and oral tradition would soon be lost to the world. I did find the tone of her introductory essay rather patronising as she describes the Sioux as primitive and childlike, dismissing their achievements and history. Ironically such a lifestyle, in tune with nature instead of wilfully destroying it, is now seen as perhaps they only way for us all to survive!

There are thirty-eight stories in the collection, some of which I enjoyed very much, others that were interesting as representations of Sioux culture and beliefs. Humanised animals feature frequently as do magical spirits and witches and I was frequently reminded of African tales such as Redemption In Indigo by Karen Lord. Some of the moral fables are similar in message to Aesop's fables and I liked several of the creation myths explaining why bears travel in twos or why frogs are even lower in the world hierarchy than rabbits. However, without any existing knowledge of Sioux culture, many of the twists and turns seemed bafflingly arbitrary and I didn't understand why events happened as they did.

Temoj

History / General
Marie L. McLaughlin