Week 3 Blog

In the first chapter of Michael Castro's "Interpretating the Indian," he says of the difference between the Indian performer and the Western poet, "An Indian singer or chanter does not merely seek to entertain or to please; he wants to effect change in himself, in nature, or in his fellow human beings. The word is understood and used as an instrument of power" (12). The purpose of Indian song then is to allow the performer or performers to connect themselves to their communities and the land that they live on. As Castro will later say "Indian poetry seeks to be effective, not merely affective" (24). The inherent differences between Western poetry and Indian song is further shown when Castro says, "Unlike much of English verse, traditional Indian poetry is rarely tragic or sad. Instead, as Barnes observed, it is characterized by affirmation." This idea continues to be expanded when Castro quotes Paula Gunn Allen saying, "The tribes do not celebrate an individual's ability to feel emotion, for it is assumed that all people are able to do so, making expression of this basic ability arrogant, presumptuous, and gratuitous... The tribes seek through song, ceremony, legend, sacred stories (myths), and tales to embody, articulate, and share reality... to verablize the sense of the majesty and reverent mystery of all things, and to actualize, in language, those truths of being and experience that give to humanity its greatest significance and dignity (34). One way that Indian song connects to the community and the land is through the use of "magical symbols," which are such things as lightning, snakes, and the coyote. Castro says of this, "Such magical symbols are everywhere in Indian life because all things are seen as intelligent and related, and as physically and spiritually alive." As Lame Deer (John Fire) says, "We see in the world around us many symbols which teach us the meaning of life... We Indians live in a world where the spiritual and the commonplace are one" (36).

I bring all this up because for me it pointed out some interesting differences between what is considered poetical by Western standards and what would be considered poetical in an oral tradition. As it seems to me that Castro (I also see this occuring in Cronyn's "American Indian Poetry" for example the use of "magical symbols" in such songs as "Early Moon" and "The Girl Deserted by Her Jealous Companions," with the lyric "My love is swift as the deer, he would speed through the forest to find me.") is saying the goal of Indian song is to create a sense of oneness with the world in which the singer or dancer finds himself. This means that the Indian performer has to always take part in his community. He cannot do as a typical western poet and just find an inspiring place to sit down and begin writing. The oral perfomer has to participate in the life of his tribe in order to create his art. The Western poet can still write what would be considered "good" poetry, even if he completely removes himself from everyday life. Thus the Indian performer not only performs his art for his audience but creates his art from actively living amongst that audience. The Western poet can chose to only write of himself and his thoughts. Maybe one way of saying all this is to say that the oral performer strives for attachment and the Western poet can chose the degree of his attachment, if he choses any at all?