Kelley's Ethno Blog

“I was foolish someone else was wise”

2005-11-29T20:14:00.000-08:00

"I was foolish someone else was wise"

(Praises of the Bantu Kings Alcheringa 9).

I wrote a rather lengthy response on Symposium and Technicians earlier in the semester, but I still agree with many of the concepts in this book. The term "primitive" is limiting and needs to be re-defined. Cliches are to be abandoned. In addition, the key to making sense of ancient or experimental material is not to try and capture the true form (meaning the authentic rendering) but to grasp the essence. I think it is clear that the original can never be accurately translated. Translating oral poetry, songs, stories, etc can never be truly perfect. Environmental sounds, sights, sighs and even cultural differences are hard, if not impossible, to replicate.

One can still be a technician and try to encapsulate the original in some form if some ideas are still kept central to the transcription. It is important to recognize the cultural idiosyncrasies involving the texts one transcribes. In Tedlock’s case, he learned some Native American language. This made him, perhaps, more sensitive to the culture as a whole. It took down some of the cultural barriers for him.

Another idea to keep in mind is that sacred is not primitive. "Sacred" carries multiple meanings and any "technician" must keep that notion in mind. Rothenberg says in the Alcheringa, "there is another side to discourse" (64). Even Vicuna and Sabina and even Antin all have elements of the "sacred" in their performances. (Remember Eshleman?)
As Rothenberg states in the Alcheringa, by examining all forms and systems of poetry one can find new ways to present and transcribe it (5). This is an ongoing process—one as Rothenberg says, without conclusion.

Sources for my project

2005-11-22T10:34:00.000-08:00

I would like to list my working bib for my project.

"United or dominated" Germa'n Carrasco and Cecilia Pavon, in Página12, 15 of
December of 2003.

Higgins, Dick. Pattern Poetry. New York: S U of New York P, 1987.

Lippard Lucy. "Spinning the Common Thread"

Méndez-Ramírez Hugo. "Cryptic Weaving"

Ong, Walter. Orality and Literacy. London: Routledge, 1988.

Polkinhorn, Harry. "Sound image in Experimental Poetry." Visible Language 2001.

Silko, Leslie Marmon. Yellow Woman and a Beauty of the Spirit. NewYork: Touchstone,
1996.
~"As a Child I Loved to Draw and Cut Paper"
~"On Photography"
~"The Indian with the Camera"

The Precarious: The Art and Life of Cecilia Vicuna.

Quipoem

World of Poetry http://www.worldofpoetry.com/cv_t2.htm

"Cecilia Vicuña: The poet who conquered New York " Maureen Lennon Zaninovic,
Mercury, Tuesday 16 of November of 2004.

Chasing the Gunniwolf-Ethnopoetic Text in a New Way

2005-11-17T07:55:00.000-08:00

Kelley Gordon
Dr. Sherwood 766
Experiment 3

Chasing the Gunniwolf

As a children’s librarian, I was trained in the "art" of storytelling. Getting toddlers, preschoolers or kindergartners totally focused on a book’s telling is our goal. The Gunniwolf or Gunniwulf is my all time favorite folk tale to share with kids. This text is easily manipulated to enrapture the hardest to please customer. Wilhelmina Harper published the original text in the 1900s; she had adapted it from an old folktale.
This ethnopoetic folktale has been associated with Native American, Indian, German and even African folklore. Thus, it is likely that this was an oral tale taken from primarily oral cultures. This text-based script is a representation of how I tell the tale orally. How would Hymes feel about that?
I am also including a symbol sheet (for Dr. Sherwood-I could not get it to reproduce on the blog) that I would use to give me clues to tell the story without script or text.
Note: This book is better suited for a kindergartner. The nature of repetition, word patterns and plot predictability are all good ways to get the children interested n the text. According to Sue McCleaf Nespeca (story time expert), children will be acquiring the fundamentals of reading by picking texts with these basic elements.

The Gunniwulf

Once upon a time there was a leettle girl who lived with her mother waaay out at the veery edge of the jungle. (Exaggeration)
Now every day, that little girl's mother would say to her,
(I put my hands on my hips and point and shake my finger at the children)
"Little Girl, don't you go near that jungle by yourself, cause if you do, the Gunniwolf's. . . gonna. . . get . . . you!" (This last part is said with a scary intonation)
And every day, that little girl said, (I put my head down shyly)
"Yes, Mother, I know. I won't EVER go near the jungle." (I shake my head "no")
And she never did. (I shake my head very deliberately)
And one day, that little girl's mother said, (I put my hands on my hips)
"Little Girl, I have to go away"
"Remember: don't you go NEAR that jungle, cause if you do… the Gunniwolf's Gonna Get You!" (This I repeat very slowly while shaking my finger)
And that little girl said, "Yes, Mother, I know, I won't go near the jungle!" (I put my head down shyly)
As soon as her mother was gone, the little girl
saw some Beeautiful white flowers, growing right at the verrry (forced voice) edge of the jungle. (I usually have some kind of prop)
"Oooh!" she said. "Those white flowers would make a beautiful bouquet for my mother!"
So she went over and she picked ‘em. (Was she supposed to do that? Nooooo.)
And as she picked them, she sang a little song:
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
The-een, she saw some lovvvely Pink flowers, growing just inside (forced voice) the jungle.
"Oooh!" she said. "Those pink flowers would make a lovely bouquet for my momma!" So she went in and she picked ‘em. (Uh-oh! Was she supposed to do that? Noooo.)
(I make a motion of picking and gathering)
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
The-en, she saw some gorgeous orange flowers, growing right in the middle (forced voice) of the jungle.
"Oooh! Those orange flowers would make a gorgeous bouquet for my mother!" So she went in and she picked ‘em. (Uh-oh! Was she supposed to do that? Noooo.)
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
Just then… right in front of her…gasp… she saw THE GUNNIWOLF! (I say his name loudly and give a growly roar)
"Little girl! Why for you move?" (My voice is gravely, growly)
"I no move!" (I’m scared)
"Then sing that guten sweeten song again!" (growly)
So the little girl sang:
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
And the Gunniwolf fell fast asleep! (I yawn and stretch)
Away little girl ran: tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe (Say quickly to mimic running quickly)
Away from that ol’ Gunniwolf.
But. . (gasp).. the Gunniwolf Woke Up! (Oh-No!)
Hunker--cha!
Hunker--cha! > These are the sounds of Gunniwulf chasing her
Hunker--cha!
"Little girl! Why you move?" (growly)
"I no move!" (A little less scared)
"Then sing your guten sweeten song again!"
So the little girl sang:
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
And the Gunniwolf fell fast asleep. (Yawn)
Away ran the little girl
tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe... tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe (I say it quickly to mimic running quickly)
Away from that ol’ Gunniwolf.
Again the Gunniwolf woke up!
Hunker--cha!
Hunker--cha!
Hunker--cha!
Tippy toe tippy toe tippy toe
HUNKer--cha HUNKer--cha!
And her caught her
"Little girl! Why for you move?" (growly)
"I no move!" (not scared at all)
"Then sing your guten, sweeten song again!"
So the little girl sang:
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
Kum-ki, kum-kwa
The Gunniwolf nodded, nodded and finally fell faaast asleep.
So away the little girl ran tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe...tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe…tippy-toe, tippy-toe, tippy-toe... (very quickly) as fast as she could until she got all the way back to her house
Until this very day, that little girl has never, ever gone back into that jungle!
And that's that.

2005-11-13T10:59:00.000-08:00

Juniper Fuse and The Tablets: The Wick that Leads to Imagination
"All concepts are misconceptions" (139).

The Tablets were quite confusing to me -at first. This book is certainly beyond a literal reading. I found that I didn’t really read the footnotes; for me, they took away from the experience. I am nervously thinking that some of it seemed like the Wasteland (sorry Dr. Sherwood). This book seems like performance art on a page. Like Eshleman, Schwerner gives a ballad on history—the Tigris and the Euphrates, etc. I almost envisioned these tablets being discovered among other artifacts in archaeological digs. The pictographs reminded me of the Egyptian hieroglyphics. I don’t believe that the words are necessarily the point of focus. Rather, Schwerner wanted to implant ideas. I can’t help but think of the Alcheringa when Rothenberg states, "Poetics. Poetry, the process of" (61). This seems to apply to Schwerner. Ethnopoetics, the Alcheringa reiterates, enlarges our understanding of what a poem is (50).

"The Desire to Become Conscious"

Juniper Fuse is astounding. I quickly realized this is representation of thought—processes and inspiration on a page. They represent, to me, someone in the act of creating (as opposed to having a perfect piece printed on a perfect page). This is ironic as Eshleman is reflecting upon the images in the cave—he is "sketching" cave art for a general audience to see. He mentions that images are inseparable from the words (xv). He represents this imagery in way that lets his reader into his imagination.
Like The Tablets, Eshleman’s book is also reminiscent of an archaeological expedition. He is tracing origins: origins of myth, religion, and sex. He seems to be trying to tie everything together—birth, death, and a sort of transcendence. He connects the 21st century reader to the ancient past, putting us almost on the same level. I also saw this book as a ballad devoted to history and myth.
He pushes the envelope of convention almost making the reader uncomfortable at times (i.e. the episode with his psychiatrist). The image of the fuse, or wick, leads me to think of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, and people being led to the light of being and becoming. I was pleased when I read that Eshleman mentions this very thing later in the book. He even seems to make connection to Darwin and "survival of the fittest." He brings, as he says, the poet out of the cave and into the light. The cave, to him, is birth, or, in this case, rebirth.

For the Record

2005-11-07T11:37:00.000-08:00

For the Record: Scholarly practices

Performance. Narrative. Myth. Education. Sound poetry. These themes come together in this week’s reading dealing with performance. A poet-talker, Antin assigns the term, "myth" a little used definition: "to talk." He seems to advocate listening beyond the literal. Let someone talk and preserve his or her myth; don’t assign your own idea of myth, but allow it to stay original—unlike the men in suits to whom Antin refers. Education does not make someone a better decoder-listening does. Antin’s own piece, lacking punctuation and conventional grammatical construction, makes a statement of its own. He refuses to be put into a box and labeled "a poet". Rather, he is what he is. Assigning traditional grammar to his piece would take away from his persona and would misrepresent his point. As Davidson points out, Antin’s performances are tantamount to who he is. Hymes, too, addresses the issue of interpretability.

Hymes sees performance as central to understanding folklore. He looked at two storytellers and de-codes their accounts. He finds them to contain many subtle differences which somewhat change the meanings of the two coyote stories. He points out that translators may miss subtleties like these as they concentrate on what only make sense to them. Scholars can ignore things. He also pints out problems in taking dictation as the dictator many be sensitive to the translator’s limited knowledge of the culture. Hymes advocates a better system of transcription—a better way to rate variation in performances. Traditional systems are no longer good enough. To Hymes, understanding the nature of a performance is central to transcribing it. He emphasizes pushing beyond educational knowledge to really understand the nature of performance. Like Hymes, Davidson also pushes the academic envelope.

Davidson argues that tapes represent life. Tapes can be extensions of works—not replacements. Having tapes of performances represent attitude shifts and changes in life. Taped pieces can illuminate the written; new things can be seen that otherwise may have been missed in just reading the text. Tapes, he says, can be oral notebooks where listeners can learn the poet’s art of inflection. Tape should not be abhorred, but embraced. They have value as learning tools. People can compare two rendering of the same story. Poets and performers don’t have to worry about textual representation of their works. Tapes will not necessarily replace text and text-based criticism, but they will help to enhance performance particularly of the avant-garde.

If Vicuna was not alive and her performances were coming to us through straight textual translations, would they be the same? Authenticity may have been lost to improper de-coding. Conventional grammar and diction may have replaced deliberate line breaks and vocables. As Antin says, education does not a perfect decoder make.

"Words are time, simply time and sound" -Vicuna

2005-10-31T13:46:00.000-08:00

*Note: Please see my last blog entry for an explanation of my in-class project.

"Words are time, simply time and sound"-Vicuna

Both Instan and Middle Passages challenge the reader of conventional poetry. They invite interpretation and inspire experimentation. After listening to the podcasts of Vicuna, I got a different impression than I had from reading Instan. I knew the text was something special and that it was not only visual poetry, but also it was art as well. After listening to her, however, I heard a mystical quality to her voice that reminded me of Maria Sabina. A soft-spoken woman, her syllables seem deliberate, emphatic and rhythmic. In the second performance, she shakes shells to her singing—one can hear the passion, feeling and her total absorption into her own words. "The universe was created by sound," and so she creates by sound (podcast 2 Vicuna). She creates her own ethereal universe as she sings and chants her poetry. One cannot minimize her poetic impact by labeling her merely a performance artist, or poet, or mystic. Indeed she manages to somewhat close the gap between the oral and textually based poetry. Instan has an oral quality to it—words chasing words on page. There’s no real linear structure as no page numbers exist—or even titles to the pieces, "Vicuna locates her poetry at the interstices of myth and language" (Sherwood 85). She is not strictly an oral or textual poet; rather she combines the two into her own system; "She does not simply ‘read’ poems from a written text, she weaves variations" (Sherwood 88).

Brathwaite’s Middle Passages seethes and teems with emotion. The book itself seems to breathe. Often, I had to stop and actually read the pieces aloud. In Brathwaite’s article he stresses that it is people who revolutionize language, and, indeed, he does (8). Like Vicuna, his passages are strong and emphatic—the text bursts with power, and textual play which brings an oral quality to the text itself. Each passage reads as its own narrative against slavery and societal notions. "Stone" is chilling and his homage to black singers, athletes, and politicians makes a strong statement. The deliberate line breaks enjambment and hard consonant sounds make his work come alive on the page. Like Vicuna, he breaks the barrier between the oral and the text. Each passage is almost like a ballad with a rhythmic flow. The text does not rely upon structure as much as it relies on wordplay—italics, bold print and hard stops. I appreciate his style, as I structure my own poetry in a similar manner. It is not about the text, but about the practitioner and what he or she brings to the word—and to the world.

Proposal for Final 765
Photography and Native American Narrative
Upon reading Leslie Marmon Silko’s Storyteller and Yellow Woman and a Beauty of the Spirit, I realize the importance of photography to her idea of narrative. Storyteller, I feel, is enhanced by the pictures. It is like opening up a family Bible. Each photo seems to bring about another memory for Silko. One cannot tell if the story sparks the picture or the picture sparks the story/memory.
My questions of interest are: Does photography enhance story-telling, or does it take something away from it? Can photography stand in place of a narrative? Finally, does technology take away from oral tradition? Does photography preserve tradition?

Sands of Time 2

2005-10-24T13:07:00.000-07:00

Blog for October 26, 2005: Navajo Sand Painting

In class I explained and demonstrated a little about sand painting and the importance it has to Navajo healing ceremonies.

My sample explained:
This was a male shooting way painting. Used in healing or curing- to counter-act infection from lightning and arrows. Also for colds, fevers, rheumatism, paralysis, and abdominal pain.
This was a painting given to the Holy Man by the Sun, depicting a screen made of wooden rods which is part of the Sun’s House phase of the Male Shootingway Ceremony. The chanter makes the sand screen when he does not own such a screen in reality.

The Father Sky and Mother Earth Narrative
Father Sky and Mother Earth appear in many of the sand paintings throughout most of the Navajo healing ceremonies of "Ways." These include the Shooting Way, Mountain Way and Blessing Way. They are invoked not because of a part in a particular story, but because of their strength and all pervading importance.
Colors and Explanation of Sun’s House
There are Blue, white, black and yellow suns, moons, and winds
Black, white, blue, yellow cloud columns with birds over them
Yellow, blue, black, and white Sun’s House: made up of 4 little houses: yellow wind, sun, dark wind, and moon
Two sets of blue sun, white moon, black wind, yellow wind
The little circles are Sky people emerging from each cloud column
All surrounded by a rainbow bar and lightning: The rainbow allows the entrance of the Holy People
The colors correlate to the way the face should be painted during this particular ceremony

Closing Prayer from the Navajo Blessing Way Ceremony
Hózhóogo naasháa doo
Shitsijí' hózhóogo naasháa doo
Shikéédéé hózhóogo naasháa doo
Shideigi hózhóogo naasháa doo
T'áá altso shinaagóó hózhóogo naasháa doo
Hózhó náhásdlíí'
Hózhó náhásdlíí'
Hózhó náhásdlíí'
Hózhó náhásdlíí'

In beauty I walk
With beauty before me I walk
With beauty behind me I walk
With beauty above me I walk
With beauty around me I walk
It has become beauty again
It has become beauty again
It has become beauty again
It has become beauty again

For more information:
Read the Navajo Origin Story
The Book of the Navajo by Raymond Friday Locke
Sand paintings of the Navajo Shootingway and the Walcott Collection by Leland Wyman

Finding the Right Words to Say...

2005-10-17T14:05:00.000-07:00

Note: Please see the addition to my October 9th blog regarding my first experiment.

Finding the Right Words to Say…
"Writing like speaking, is a performance" ("Poetics" 1)

Dennis Tedlock turns us all in to Leslie Marmon Silko—in a way. In "Finding the Center," Tedlock defends his use of textual representation of poetry. To him, we each can become a storyteller and can experience "vocal texts" if the transcriber has done his job correctly. At one time, however, Tedlock admits that even he had been made deaf by "linguistic training" ("Narrative" xviii). He lassoes a trained academic reader back into the oral tradition by employing italics, bold type, and other easy to understand textual manipulations. To him, representing the natural performance as closely as possible makes a greater impact on the reader’s mental images. In "Because He Made Marks on Paper," he takes us through his idea that transcription is so much more than just dictation—rather a good transcriber must use a system to represent the performance—to capture the essence of the original. Tedlock writes, "when writing makes its appearance on the scene, it does so an instrument of power" (581).
Through his coding and scoring, he correlates oral sounds to the readable text. HOWEVER, a reader can still reproduce the oral performance following Tedlock’s example. When I applied his technique onto "Coyote and Junco," I was able to picture the speaker and the story in my mind. His system allows me to become a performer and experience the power for myself.
"People Either Go Click" is fantastic way to represent Tedlock. He has such a grip on language and how to present complicated oral poetry to us non-natives. I like Tedlock’s approach to transcription and agree that every sigh, pause and other natural sounds contribute to the overall meaning of these pieces. Tedlock’s system of coding and scoring makes these mystic and spiritual pieces accessible. By freeing his mind from the formal linguistic training of his past, he is able to fairly represent cultures, stories, and poems.
Dennis Tedlock and M. Jane Young discuss the importance of transcribing beyond the literal. Like Rothenberg, they both see beyond a dictation-representation relationship. Knowledge of the culture also helps in the transcription. Tedlock started to pick up the Zuni language and this information helped him to understand emphasis of certain words in ceremonies, chants, etc.
Young recognizes limitations in re-transcribing old collections. She can only imbue the pieces with her knowledge of the sacred ceremonies and rituals to help decide where to put emphasis. Unlike Tedlock, she assigns sections to her transcription. Perhaps because she does not know what the original pieces sounded like, she cannot score as thoroughly as Tedlock. She, however, admits that she has taken the Zuni narratives and has, "organized them into major divisions on the basis of temporal components" (1). This structural organization seems to take away from the experience as a whole (at least for me).
I can relate to Tedlock’s theory on transcription. His method is one to which I can easily subscribe. He brings us out of the dark, teaching us something new about listening closely and paying attention to the little quirks that make language come alive. His method of transcription gives us mental power—the power of vision. Because of his attention to detail and his way of making his transcription understandable to the untrained reader, we can experience the excitement of an oral performance for ourselves.

The Kiowa: Shake, Rattle, and Roll

2005-10-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

For your review:

Here is the project I did in class based on a Kiowa Gourd Song. First on the page was some information regarding the ceremony. Then there were the English lyrics for the song I transcribed. Then, at the bottom of the page, is my phonetic transcription. Please listen to the clip of "Satethieday's Song" on the link I provided here for you, then follow my transcription.
What are Kiowa Gourd Dance Songs?

Ceremonial Gourd Dances are now usually part of pow-wows. Rattles made from gourds are used and the dancers wear special clothes. Most of the dancers are men and the songs are usually personal. The gourd dance may have developed when the federal government banned the Sun Dance. "They say the Gourd Dance was started in the 1800s when a Kiowa man, I believe his name was Red Wolf, was out hunting one night. He woke up and heard a wolf howling. And the wolf began to sing and the man learned those songs with that tempo and he brought those songs back to his people" (http://www.osage-ncoa.org/pages/gourddance.shtml)

This is a phonetic transcription of "SatethiedayÂs Song." Mooney had written that
Set-t'ainte, whose name among the Kiowa is still one to conjure by, first acquired his title of "Orator of the Plains" in connection with the events which led to the treaty of Medicine Lodge, in 1867. He was already sufficiently distinguished among his own people as a leader on the warpath. In May preceding the treaty he visited Fort Larned, and, confronting General Hancock, he denounced agent Leavenworth and complained of the aggression of the white men in a fiery speech, which is described as a masterly effort, from its opening, when he called the sun to witness that he would "talk straight," to the close, when looking around over the prairie, he said that it was large and good, and declared that he did not want it stained with blood.
(Mooney 1898, 207)

Satethieday's (White Bear): Song Lyrics in English
I'm going north where the grey wolf country is.
The wolves might eat or kill me.
I may not come back.
Brother, if you don't come back, you will cry for me. (www.uapress.arizona.edu/extras/kiowa/kiowasng.htm)

My Transcription

First 4 Drum Beats solo
Four Drum Beats pattern throughout
"Beat Beat Beat Beat"
"Beat Beat Beat Beat"
Caller: oooh-naa a
yah-
oh

Chorus: o-yuh yuh yuh hoy-a h’ya yoooh heya -ya ~ Ay! ah Yoh! Ah O! hey ya hey ah ah way-a ah ah oh
Ah sa gu-hey gay -toe na-ha te sa ay-sa ah-ba tae –ga de-saaa haaay-haaay-owaay-a-owaaay-a-o
(Repeat)
Ay! ah Yoh! Ah O! hey ya hey ah ah way-a ah ah ho
Ah sa gu-hey gay -toe na-ha te sa ay-sa ah-ba tae –ga de-saaa haaay-haaay-owaay-a-owaaay-a-o
Caller fades away oooh-naa a
yah-
oh
Chorus fades away

2005-10-03T12:45:00.000-07:00

"We should not seek to judge but to understand" (Lord 7).
Oral poetry seems like it always coming under attack. From Plato who condemned Homer for using mnemonic devices to single- minded people who call this form of poetry "primitive." Albert Lord defends oral poetry not only in form but also in delivery. He puts the oral back into the hands of the "singer of tales." Lord reveals that oral poetry is always individual and figurative language, traditional phrases and memory aids do not take away this individualism. Like Tedlock, Lord advocates not inflicting our "traditional" sense of poetry onto these often-ancient pieces. Although the artist/poet may use memory devices, he/she is still a creator—something that we saw echoed in Castro’s writing. "What is important is not the oral performance but rather the composition during the oral performance" (5). Indeed, Lord brings some of Parry’s musings into question by reiterating the importance of repetition and other verbal cues. "If we equate it with improvisation in a broad sense, we are again in error" (5). Lord, in his article, strips away many stereotypes and stigma involving oral poetry. Indeed, he, like Rothenberg, warns us to wary of the word "primitive." This is a term, which minimizes and stalls ethnopoetics as a whole!
It seems that we always return to the argument that the oral gets lost in translation. This is an issue that often disturbs class members and critics alike. Lord, to some extent, agrees. Like Tedlock, he warns future ethnographers to be careful in transcription. If the "singer of tales" is to write a piece himself, not only could he find it confusing, but also he would take away the originality of his own song. As Lord points out—the fixed text becomes the original. Operative term being "the" as oral tradition has existed long before the written! Lord concurs with Tedlock that straight dictation will and has only served to destroy many pieces. Lord, Tedlock and Foley all advocate scoring as one way to try and stop the destruction. We may have the verses and words, but the feeling is gone. Ethnographers have a responsibility to maintain some semblance of the spirit of the original. As Tedlock points out, there is audible text and a visible text-full of notations and voice inflections, environmental effects, etc. What are we to do? It seems as if Lord is pushing for a division of sorts. An oral poet cannot also be a written poet. Keep oral poetry oral and only apply literary convention to written and fixed text. Keep in mind as Ong points out, "writing cannot exist without orality" (8).Tedlock also seems to advocate the abandonment of traditional linguistic morays when examining written recordings of oral pieces. Oral pieces that are written are merely recordings and cannot impact the tradition too negatively when viewed as such: "Verbal art must come first, its readers second (Foley 80). Ong emphasizes that once writing takes over, oral performance cannot be the same again (14). Audiences will change, modes of composition will change, and the memory devices will be gone in written pieces. Lord and Foley agree that instead of looking at oral as inferior and written as superior, we need to look at each in its own right, and we need to know when appropriate to apply "literary convention."

2005-09-26T13:19:00.000-07:00

Post-face: "WOULD-THAT-THEY-ALL-KNEW-THESE-SONGS is what I think of you. It seems as if we were beginning to walk. It seems as if we were going as far as the earth is good."

Jerome Rothenberg’s Technicians of the Sacred differs from other and earlier texts we have examined. Rothenberg divides his anthology not only geographically, but also topically. Within each grouping, he has poems, pictures and stories published close to one another (this proves to be significant to the reading). By examining pieces topically first, readers can a get a sense of the different cultural attitudes toward death, creation, etc. This text is our "gateway" of sorts into other realms. He literally becomes the technologist, doing what we novices cannot-representing the ancient in a way we can grasp the most meaning.

Ethnopoetics examines ancient written and oral pieces outside of Western constraints. Symposium of the Whole contains many pieces surrounding the various aspects of ethnopoetics. From discussions about symbols to definitions of the primitive, Symposium has some surprising pieces surrounding such writers as Plato. Ethnopoetics is changing the way we can examine poetry as a whole. Analyzing speakers, audiences, and recognizing discrepancies in translation can be applied to almost any non-Western piece. The spectrum is surely represented when reading through the table of contents in the Symposium.

As I read the Whorf selection in the Symposium of the Whole, I found it interesting how Whorf equates the Hopi nonuse of verb tenses with the very fabric of their being. Their language, though hard to translate, makes the Hopi who they are and connects them to their earth and to their universe as a whole.

The Whorf half of the Sapir-Whorf theory, Benjamin Lee Whorf’s "An American Indian Model of the Universe" analyzes the Hopi language and how it relates to the universe at large. Important to note is that the Hopi do not have a "concept" of linear time and space as we do. In addition, they do not necessarily have a past, present and future tense (at least in our traditional sense). Instead, they have two "cosmic" forms: the manifested and the manifesting. They do not divide the universe into tenses or blocks of linear time. Whorf also refers to these forms as the objective and the subjective. Found in the subjective is hope and hoping, and anything that appears in the heart such as nature. The subjective (the manifesting) also contains mentality, intellect, emotion, and desire. Here lies a type of future in that the Hopi believe that life events are inevitable, and, instead of there being a future per say, man moves toward this inevitability. Whorf mentions that the Hopi have a metaphysics and we all must understand it to understand them. Their concept of time and space is based on abstractions, which our language lacks (192). Yet, the Hopi still account for their interrelations and phenomena (192). In truth, our own metaphysics is made from the three tenses of past, present and future. Whorf believes that the universe can be accounted for without specific allusions to time and space. Traditional English cannot account for the richness and almost visible quality to their language.
Whorf also mentions that the Hopi language relies more on verbs than on nouns. He mentions a verbal form called the "inceptive" which takes a word to the edge of subjectivity and objectivity. Whorf says it is used to denote the start or the beginning (194). It is a key concept to understanding their language as one must know when something started or ended. Their language, to them, is their communication with the universe around them. They, then, have a better understanding of nature. Whorf seems to compare the Hopi’s way of speaking with the growing of corn—they need both to live. Everything in the Hopi language seems to be experienced as it happens. This is a central issue when thinking about Native American language in general. Dancing, chanting, singing is an extension of self. The world and its actions are taken as they come and experienced as they happen. In short life is a series of processes. As Whorf states in his conclusion, "the Hopi language gets along perfectly without tenses for its verbs" (196).

“I am the woman who looks into the insides of things and investigates”

2005-09-19T12:23:00.000-07:00

"I am the woman who looks into the insides of things and investigates"

After listening to Jerome Rothenburg’s reenactment of one of Maria Sabina’s chants, I am struck by the mysticism of her words. Although her words come to us through a different medium (a man vs. a woman), the soul, and the spiritual quality is still apparent. The strength of her words, her self-conviction as a healer and her total humanness makes her culture and her purpose come alive. I find it interesting that her Catholic faith could coincide with her Mushroom ceremony. For me, I can’t help but think of people who lambaste these chants as primal or primitive. I believe her solid faith and beliefs takes the savage right out of it.
I am struck by her--amazed by her and in awe of her. She was not humble; she was not weak. Everything she approached she took almost as commonplace. She accepted her destiny. She took life as it came and did not lay down and die as some weaker people may have. Instead, she found the strength to find her path as a Wise One and to devote her life to helping those weaker than her.

Anne Waldman takes rhythm and musical chant attributed to Maria Sabina to identify qualities in every woman. Although Maria Sabina’s chants evoked ancient spirits and mystical visions to help her heal the sick, Waldman’s modern chant seems to bring woman’s spirituality to the surface—to sanctify what exactly makes a woman a woman. I found myself moved to tears at the beginning of Waldman’s chant as her conviction poured from between the lines of her free rhyme verses. One cannot help but to hear the energy radiate from Waldman’s voice. She, like Sabina, is a woman of the books here—telling a tale of woman. She uses the oral to emphasize the individuality and spirituality of women as a whole. She lays open her own soul for examination. She takes the listener on a journey though the consciousness of an outspoken woman—not afraid or embarrassed of her own self-affirming words. Indeed, Maria Sabina had nothing to hide and bared her soul to all who knew her. Waldman, too, enlightens her audiences through her beliefs and convictions.

She (Sabina) brought her culture into a "foreign" world—an act, which may have cost her a home. In fact, she was arrested several times and her possessions taken from her. This was the cost for her helping others "to see God." Yepez, in his article "Clock Woman In The Land Of Mixed Feelings: The Place of Maria Sabina in Mexican Culture" says that Sabina was punished for standing in opposition to modernization (ubuweb). She had no choice but to survive by accepting the foreigner. Yepez also infers that Mexico hated Sabina being in the spotlight as it highlighted her poverty. However, as Munn points out, Sabina saved her chants, her rituals and her culture from oblivion by sharing them (162). In addition, her very existence made it possible for Waldman to find the inspiration for Fast Speaking Woman. This extraordinary woman who lived and died so ordinarily, changed her world and continues to do so--just by her words-just by her words.

"There is no resentment, there is no rancor, there is no insult, there is no
anger
It is not a matter of insults, it is not a matter of lies
It is a matter of life and well-being, of lifting up, of restoring"
-Maria Sabina

Envisioning the Visionary

2005-09-10T11:58:00.000-07:00

Envisioning the Visionary
"The American Indian is of the soil, whether it be the region of the forests, plains, pueblos, or mesas. He fits into the landscape, for the land that fashioned the continent also fashioned the man for his surroundings. He once grew as naturally as the wild sunflowers; he belongs just as the buffalo belongs... ---Luther Standing Bear (1868?-1939) Oglala Sioux chief

Early Native American works were easily subjected to the whims of ethnographers. In fact, in comparing Densmore to Austin’s translations, one can see a big difference in linguistic form. Densmore’s pieces seem to adhere more to the brevity, repetition and poetic language that Barnes says characterizes Native American verse. Even Mary Austin who was said to see the "magic" in Native pieces deleted passages to make them easier for a white audience to understand (Castro 29). We now know that ethnopoetics is concerned (among other things) with keeping the spirit and meaning of an original work, but many of these early transcribers subjected their own meanings onto these pieces. Something, it seems, always gets forfeited in the translation.

As discussed in the September 7 class, true translation seems almost impossible. As Ayman mentioned, taking an ancient story written in a native tongue and transcribing it to be understood by a mass transforms the piece. It just no loner holds the same mysticism as it once did. In fact, Amanda and I were discussing this very same issue before class that day—does the act of translating these pieces to black and white lead to as Amanda called it the "bastardization" of the piece? This is plainly an issue that has followed the translators of Native American lit since the beginning. Clearly, taking these works and putting them on paper does take something away from the original. Yet, these papers make Native American stories and songs more accessible to people who otherwise may have never been exposed to them. Indeed, "the active reshaping of Native American performances so as to project putative precedents to Modernist American poetry: falsely justifies Modern practice and dramatically distorts Native practice" (Sherwood 6). So what do we do? It’s important to keep in mind what Castro writes about…Native Americans were not entertainers. They sang and chanted for empowerment (11). If we as readers can try and feel what the singer/chanter was trying to convey, perhaps we can still be moved by these paper-based oral pieces. As Austin pointed out in her preface to Cronyn, states of mind were more important than words (xviii).

We should, as they say, let the spirit move us. Castro alludes to a "holistic awareness" –a relationship of the Native American’s oneness to the earth. This is something that Austin even suggested that mainstream American poets examine for inspiration in their own works. We can try and envision the nonverbal to help us to grasp the verbal. As Austin writes in her preface to Cronyn, the soul of the singer is put into harmony with the essence of things (xv). We cannot, then, just objectify these works.

Here is a poem from Poetry 1917 called, "Fear"

The odor of death
In the front of my body
The odor of death
Before me
Is there anyone
Who would weep for me?
My wife
Would weep for me

Read for the literal, it is poignant. However, envisioning this person’s state of mind, his fear and trepidation—does that change the meaning? It is more than transcription; it is more than just reading. We, too, have a job-- to feel what Austin points out is the magic power of the song (xv).

Time for Reflection

2005-09-05T08:25:00.000-07:00

Reflecting upon the readings, I understand the importance of ethnopoetics as a whole. Even though the early linguists butchered many Native stories by censoring what they deemed to be “vulgar” or barbaric, at least some stories (though not whole) were saved. The early linguists seemed to have suffered from the perception that what they were doing was not legitimate. In this light I find it interesting that the Native Americans in North America were seen as savages, yet European authors romanticized them.

A valuable part of our history (at least in terms of Native Americans) could have been lost. Many of us are descended from Native Americans and should have access to that part of our history. Oral traditions, I would like to think, seem to be more understood in the 21st century than in the past. Castro remarked that oral poetry is “human renewal.” I believe it is because of the work of people like Natalie Curtis that we have anything at all. Oral literature/poetry needs to have its original inflection and emphasis so that we can know the passion and fire with which the speaker told the tale. We cannot simply inflect conventional English or language onto these works as something would truly be lost in translation. Truly- a lot would be lost. Would we even know about creation myths? Would we know about the Kiowa and their gourd dance where they howl like wolves to conclude the chant? Oral poetry cannot be written-at least in the traditional sense of the word. Poets like e.e. cummings or George Herbert experimented with form. Would their concrete poems have the same meaning if rewritten to fit “convention”?

Test

2005-08-31T17:50:00.000-07:00

Test