Contents
Preface xxi
PART ONE
The European Colonization of the Americas: Through the middle 18th century 1
Traditional Native-American Literary Expression 14
CHEROKEE MYTH 17
How the world was made 17
the first fire 18
WINNEBAGO TRICKSTER MYTH 19
from The Winnebago trickster cycle 19
ZUNI RITUAL POETRY 23
A Zuni Prayer 23
An offering of prayer sticks at the winter solstice 23
MAYAN HISTORICAL POETRY 25
They came from the East 25
TLINGIT ORAL HISTORY 25
The coming of the first white man 25
PAPAGO SONG 28
Song of the Papago war Orator 28
SENECA ORATORY 29
from The speech of Chief Red-jacket 29
The literature of Exploration (Late 15th - 17th Centuries) 31
from The journal of the firs voyage of Christopher Columbus
[by Christopher Columbus (1451-1506)]: 33
from The discovery of the West Indies 33
from Letter of Vespucci's first Brazilian voyage [by Amerigo Vespucci (1454-1512)]: 38
[The "Reasoning animals" of the new world] 38
from Relation of Nunez Cabeza de Vaca [by Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca (1490?-1557?)]:
Chapter 24: Customs of the Indians of that country 39
Chapter 25: Vigilance of the Indians in war 40
from The narrative of the expedition of Cornado [by Pedro de Casteneda (1510?-1570?]:
Chapter 3: Of how they killed the negro Estevan at Cibola 41
Chapter 4: Of how the noble Don Antonio de Mendoza made an expedition to discover Cibola 42