Reading Notes: Native American Hero Tales Unit, Part A


(Yupik mother and child)

From the Native American Unit, I chose the Hero Tales reading! In Part A's reading, there were some stories that were hard to understand. After researching a few things online, I was able to interpret what the author was saying. I loved the Jealous Uncle story the most from this section. I thought it would be difficult to process since it was three pages long, but it wasn't! The story was suspenseful and had an unexpected ending! 

There were  questions that I had when reading the story. For example, why did they name the uncle "Unnatural Uncle" instead of giving him an actual name. Also, the reading did not specify why he was jealous of his nephews. It mentioned he killed them, but why was this the case? Was it because he did not have any sons? Furthermore, why was he against killing girls, but in favor of killing boys? Also, why was the Unnatural Uncle targeting this family only? More information regarding the Unnatural Uncle could provide additional detail. Information about why he came to be this way, if he had any children himself, why did not the wife not stop him, and many other considerations could be added into the story. 

I also wondered what would happen to the characters if the ending was changed. Would their relationship evolve into something better or something even worse? The Unnatural Uncle could even have a change in heart. If I retell this story, I would add in some interior dialogue for the Unnatural Uncle and see how he feels about the matter. Since the story was mostly told from the nephew's perspective, it would be interesting to see the story from the Unnatural Uncle's perspective. 

With the thoughts and questions that I have, I hope a different story with new aspects is created!



Bibliography:
The Jealous Uncle by Stith Thompson

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