While first reading Silko's poem, I almost found the content funny. The poem read as if she were telling an old myth, like How-The-Giraffe-Got-It's-Long-Neck. Instead, though, it was the story of How-White-People-Came-To-Be, a story of the origin of these alien invaders. This sort of whimsical storytelling, in contrast with the gruesome scenes it depicted, is somewhat humorous.
This makes the purpose of the poem somewhat confusing. As Haley pointed out, the author's words "It can't be called back" indicate the fixed nature of history, even though this story about the origin of the Europeans is completely fanciful.
Regardless, Jackson's response sums up the Dystopian connection to the poem, and to modern Native American life. Europeans brought a wealth of technology and created a thriving European society here in the Americas. Nowadays, we are one of the wealthiest nations in the world. However, it is an imperfect society. As Silko indicates, historical wrongs, including those done to Native Americans, are examples of the imperfections present in much of our society.
No comments:
Post a Comment