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    American Indian stories
    American Indian stories
    American Indian stories
    Ebook170 pages2 hours

    American Indian stories

    By Zitkala-Sa

    3.5/5

    ()

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    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArchive Classics
    Release dateJan 1, 1976
    American Indian stories
    Author

    Zitkala-Sa

    Zitkála-Šá (1876-1938) was a Yankton Dakota writer, translator, musician, teacher, and activist. Born on the Yankton Indian Reservation in South Dakota, Zitkála-Šá—also known as Gertrude Simmons Bonnin—was raised by her mother following their abandonment by her German American father. Zitkála-Šá grew up on the reservation, but was taken by missionaries at the age of eight to the White’s Indiana Manual Labor Institute, a Quaker school in Wabash, Indiana. There, Zitkála-Šá was forced to suppress her heritage by cutting her hair and praying as a Quaker, but she also took advantage of the opportunity to learn reading and writing, as well as to play violin. She briefly returned to the reservation in 1887 before going back to Indiana to finish her education, after which she studied at Earlham College and played violin at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. After working from 1899 to 1901 as a music teacher at the notoriously abusive Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, Zitkála-Šá began to speak out against the program. In 1901, she wrote an article for Harper’s Monthly chronicling a young boy’s experience as a student at the school, where he felt forced to sacrifice his identity in order to assimilate. That same year, Zitkála-Šá began collecting stories for Old Indian Legends, which recorded traditional stories she learned in her youth and from members of various tribes. Over the next several decades, she wrote several story collections, countless articles for Harper’s Monthly and the Atlantic Monthly, and the libretto and songs for The Sun Dance Opera (1913). She also worked as an advocate and activist for the rights of women and American Indians, founding the National Council of American Indians with her husband and running grassroots policy and voter-registration campaigns around the country. She is remembered not only for her contributions to American Indian culture as a writer and translator, but for her tireless advocacy for resistance and reform that led to better education, healthcare, and legal standing for American Indians nationwide.

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    Reviews for American Indian stories

    3.5/5

    51 ratings6 reviews

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    • 3/5
      This was the first time I had read anything by the famed indigenous author, Zitkala-Sa. This book contained a collection of her biographical snapshots and stories of youth, folk tales, essays, and poetry. They are eloquent, profound, and deeply moving. She had raw power with her words and when you read this book, the imagery it conveys about growing up at the turn of the century on a reservation and what it means to be indigenous is profound. Essential reading for Native American scholars.
    • 2/5
      Without any historical context, I was a little lost in this collection of stories and poetry that apparently first appeared in 1912 (there is nothing in the book itself to indicate this). There is an introduction, but it is focused primarily on the author's literary merits and controversies and does little to establish the setting or origin of these tales, some of which are (semi?) autobiographical and some of which are fiction. The stories themselves are okay, if a little dull. The narrative voice is a bit remote, and sometimes the recitation of events don't really add up for me to a story per se.There are also a few poems in the back, but I found those pretty opaque and had trouble getting through them.Zitkála-Šá seems like a person who led an interesting life, but I think I would need a biography or some sort of annotated edition to get a full appreciation of her and her writing.
    • 3/5
      A collection of short pieces, each one seemingly a careful distillation of various source materials. A result is that though the collection is short, it will take repeated and careful reading to fully appreciate the experiences documented, whether presented as personal memoir, narrative non-fiction, or essay.While the gist is familiar from other readings, the particulars are significant. I'm more familiar with Oglala Lakota than Yankton Dakota, for instance.//Mint Editions reprints are unedited but newly typeset, unclear if this is the original title or if this is abridged in any way from prior edition(s). It does appear that a Bureau of Indian Affairs report cited and commented upon in the final essay, is itself omitted. USG reports are in the public domain, perhaps the original essay presumed ready accessibility to the report itself, but this is no longer true (a century after its publication).
    • 4/5
      This is a reprint of a book originally published in 1921. The cadence of the book reminds me of the cadence in which my Native father-in-law spoke. The beginning of the book reads like an autobiography and I was startled when the book shifted to stories without any separation. It was confusing to be reading the life story of a young Indian girl and then start the next story where the main character is male. Also, the final story refers to a following quote. THe quote is missing.Other than that the stories are very well written, you could almost hear the oral version in your head. The stories highlight the life of the Sioux and the truth about their treatment by the white man.
    • 4/5
      This is a very slim volume of stories, many of which are autobiographical, telling the common tale of a young Indian child taken from her family (with their consent) to be educated in white schools where (without their family's full knowledge) the "Indian" was systematically removed by denying them the use of their own language, changing their names, cutting their hair, substituting uncomfortable "American" garb for their familiar clothing (which had often been made specially for the journey with extra care), forcing them to adopt Christian religious practices, and through physical deprivation and abuse. The writing is often exquisite, with a 19th century feel to it, although the work was first published in 1926. There are also stories of coming of age, bravery, revenge and love in a more traditional story-telling style. There were one or two awkward transitions but mainly this was a highly approachable and enlightening read. The copy provided to me through Library Thing's Early Reviewers' program did not include the poems referred to by some earlier reviewers, and the final essay, "America's Indian Problem" seems to be missing some quoted material referenced by the author. Nor does this edition contain the essay "Why I am a Pagan", which I believe was part of the original publication. I have deducted a half-star from my rating for that reason.The author came to understand the need to see her experiences as a gateway to a lifetime of trying to improve the lives of her own people. While she mourned the loss of native culture inherent in the system, she craved the education, and eventually attended both Earlham College and the New England Conservatory of Music. She became an accomplished musician and teacher, and a well known journalist and activist. She and her husband, Raymond Bonnin, founded the National Council of American Indians, and worked to gain full citizenship rights for people of all tribes. They are both buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
    • 3/5
      There’s definitely a dated feel about the language. It is sometimes melodramatic. But these stories, first published in 1921, are well worth reading.

      The first piece is a poignant memoir of the author’s childhood, and it has the feel of truth. Like many of the stories, it depicts Dakota social habits in a completely natural and easy way, from the inside. Other stories deal with the intersection of beliefs between Christianity and Dakota spiritual practices. One of these, “The Soft-Hearted Sioux” is about a Sioux who converts to Christianity, and then has to deal with tribal censure and the struggle to survive. His new God doesn’t rescue him.

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    American Indian stories - Zitkala-Sa

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