The Indian Fairy Book: From the Original Legends

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

22248

Title

The Indian Fairy Book: From the Original Legends

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

Cornelius Mathews reinterprets Native American legends originally collected by Henry R. Schoolcraft, presenting them alongside world-renowned fairy tales. This collection features romantic interest and quaint extravagance, offering a magical debt repayment to the Eastern World through stories of celestial sisters, sun-snaring boys, and the origin of corn.

Summary up to 500 words

In *The Indian Fairy Book: From the Original Legends*, Cornelius Mathews reinterprets Native American tales originally gathered by Henry R. Schoolcraft, presenting them as counterparts to European and Eastern fairy tales. These stories, once recited around lodge-fires, explore romantic interests, extravagant fancy, and profound themes of transformation, family loyalty, and the gift of sustenance from the Great Spirit. The collection opens with *The Celestial Sisters*, where the skilled hunter Waupee wins the youngest sister by disguising himself as a mouse. After a series of trials, he secures her love, but she eventually ascends to the stars with her eleven elder sisters. Waupee follows, transforming he, his wife, and their son into white hawks to join her in the heavens. In *The Boy Who Set a Snare for the Sun*, the protagonist Maidwa loses a magic arrow in the land of the dead. Upon his return, he reconciles with his jealous brothers, who had intended to seize his wife, the Red Swan. Their quarrel ends in repentance and harmony, aided by the wisdom of their magical kettles. Another tale, *The Man with his Leg Tied Up*, depicts Aggo Dah Gauda, a man punished with a looped leg, who desperately searches for his daughter stolen by the buffalo-king. Tracking her via the long hair she left on branches, he eventually rescues her from the king's lodge, reuniting the family. In *The Crane that Crossed the River*, a wise crane ferries a hunter's family across a dangerous river but rejects a woman who disobeys his warning not to touch his bald head. Cursed for her disobedience, she becomes a water spirit, while the hunter's family adopts the crane as their emblem. Finally, *Wunzh, the Father of Indian Corn* tells how a fasting boy wrestles a celestial visitor. After burying the defeated spirit, Wunzh tends to the grave, and from it grows the first corn. This miracle frees his people from reliance on hunting alone, providing a lasting gift of sustenance. Through these narratives, Mathews highlights the spiritual depth and imaginative richness of Western legends, inviting readers to appreciate their romantic interest and quaint extravagance alongside world-renowned tales.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

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Categories

• Folklore
• Indians of North America