Suggests an approach to teaching American Indian literatures that focuses on origins and authorship of Indian (and by extension, non-Indian) works. Discusses the collaboration of numerous historical and personal voices in contemporary Indian works and the influence of an oral performance context. Contains a bibliography of 55 works. (SV)

Traces the development of Native American literatures as following a pattern of cultural revitalization. Examines how these literatures are being incorporated into the national literary canon and subjected to institutionalized domination at the same time that they are serving as a vehicle for indigenous political resistance and revitalization. (SV)

Describes the emergence of Native American writers and the problems they face with their achievement. Apendixes list publishers of native American poetry and contemporary poets. (CRH)

Describes how the linguistic and cultural diversity among Native Americans is reflected in their literature, and provides a bibliography of and about Native American literature. (DD)

Describes the fusion of cultural inheritance and imaginative innovation in the literary works of Native American authors and urges scholars not to view such works solely from an ethnographic perspective. (DD)

Discusses how Sherman Alexie's characters, mostly created from his experience on the Spokane Indian Reservation, embody dignity, spirit, ambiguity, fragility, and never hesitate to comment on current states of affairs from their own tough but battered perspectives. Notes the author leads a class discussion to further develop examples that…

Presents an annotated listing of bibliographies, classroom texts, criticism, and journals and newsletters for those interested in the study of American Indian literature. (AEA)

A college teacher discusses his experiences of departing from the established literary canon to teach Sherman Alexie's "Reservation Blues" as part of an upper-level American literature survey class. Students reacted to the novel and its characters, evaluated Alexie's writing techniques, and discussed their personal experiences with Native…

Suggests that the use of embedded stories in D'Arcy McNickle's novel "The Surrounded" illustrates an attitude toward storytelling and that studying aspects of this attitude can provide students with tools for encountering other Native literary works. (SV)

Reprints two Latin texts written by Harvard American Indian students in the seventeenth century with approximate English translations as well as observations on the form, structure, and grammar of the texts and their background in literary tradition. The "Honoratissimi Benefactores" is a letter of gratitude to the benefactors of Caleb…

Proposes a way to reconcile evolution with creationism by hypothesizing that the universe was created when the scientific evidence shows, speculating that this was when God began the series of creations described in Genesis, and assuming that God gave humans intelligence to uncover the methods by which he ordained scientific evolution. (Author/MJL)

Outlines a theoretical framework to help students seek patterns in the diverse content and styles of American Indian literary works. Describes four elements: differentiation, or the "signs" of Indian culture; investigation, evoking the reader's sense of history and cosmos; affirmation of Native American identity and communal values; and…

A professor submitted a passage on Native American literature for the reading comprehension section of a postgraduate standardized test. The passage (reproduced in full) points out the difficult questions that Native American literature poses about personal identity. The passage was rejected as potentially disturbing to Native American test…

A professor of American Indian literature describes the ethical dilemma she faces when teaching "Ceremony," a novel built around spiritual beliefs and activities at Laguna Pueblo. Her pedagogical duty to provide students with the most complete coherent information possible conflicts directly with respect for the secrecy surrounding…

Historically, among American Indians, the respect for the power of language has been expressed through the oral tradition: stories, myths, folklore, poetry, and song. As life experience has changed for American Indians, they continue to value these stories, recording tribal oral tradition as well as personal biography and life history. The status…