Folk-Lore and Legends: North American Indian

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

22072

Title

Folk-Lore and Legends: North American Indian

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

This volume collects North American Indian folklore tales illustrating primitive character and beliefs. Featuring stories like 'Moowis,' where a rejected lover creates a dirt-and-rag man to win a belle's heart, and 'The Girl who Married the Pine-tree,' these narratives blend fantastic imagination, moral sentiment, and humor. The collection offers a romantic glimpse into indigenous life, challenging misconceptions about advanced civilization and revealing the beauty of native language and sentiment.

Summary up to 500 words

Compiled by W. W. Gibbings, *Folk-Lore and Legends: North American Indian* offers a vivid window into the primitive character, beliefs, and moral sentiments of Indigenous peoples. The collection illustrates how fantastic imagination, magnanimity, and humor coexist with deep spiritual reverence. The volume opens with the tale of 'Moowis,' a story of revenge and romance. A scorned hunter, wounded by the rejection of a forest belle, constructs a life-sized effigy from rags, dirt, and discarded ornaments. With the aid of his guardian spirit, he brings this image to life. The girl, captivated by the stranger's appearance, marries him. However, the journey home reveals the illusion; as the heat of the sun melts the effigy's composition, the girl is left wandering the woods in despair, lamenting her fate. Another narrative, 'The Girl who Married the Pine-tree,' depicts a maiden fleeing an unwanted suitor who accepts a spirit's proposal to marry a pine tree. She vanishes into the forest, accompanied by a handsome youth, illustrating the theme of transformation and the enduring presence of guardian spirits. The collection also features 'A Legend of Manabozho,' detailing the culture hero's creation of the land and his tragic loss of his wolf son to lake spirits. In 'The Undying Head,' a sister must obey her dying brother's instructions to behead him; his animated head then continues to guide her survival, commanding her to procure food and navigate the wilderness. Further tales include 'The Boy who Snared the Sun,' 'The Maid in the Box,' and 'The Man-fish.' The latter recounts the Shawanos' migration from a frozen world to a verdant land, guided by a half-man, half-fish spirit who leads them across the Great Salt Lake to a paradise of perpetual summer. These stories collectively highlight themes of transformation, the power of dreams, the danger of hubris, and the moral sentiment inherent in the language and beliefs of the people, rendering a romantic world that transports readers into a landscape where nature and spirit are inextricably linked.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

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Categories

• Folklore
• Indigenous Cultures