From Stith
Thompson's book I picked traditional Eskimo legends as my focus. The
earliest known Eskimos were called the Dorset. They moved from
Siberia to Alaska, where they evolved 5,000 years ago. It is possible
that the Eskimos share a common ancestor with the Korean people in
Asia.
Today, there are two distinct groups of Eskimos, the Yupik and the
Inuit. The Yupik culture evolved from the Dorset and currently dwell in
south Alaska and along the coasts. About 2,000 years ago other
variations of Yupik evolved in Alaska. The Inuits, like the Yupik, are
another variation of the Dorset. They evolved more rapidly and spread
into Alaska, Canada, and Greenland.
The Eskimos
invented the kayak that many people use today. Eskimos are excellent
hunters and
fishers. They have good hunting skills and create their own weapons.
They eat a lot of meat, including whale, seals, polar bear, birds
and sometimes foxes. Animals served many purposes for the Eskimos. They
used the skin off the animals as clothing during the colder winter
months. They also used the skin for tents in the summer. In my
storybook animals are in every story and have important roles. The
animals could be seen as food, friends, or danger. In order to survive
the Eskimos had to be
smart and inventive people.
Eskimos culture has strict rules for each gender. The women manage the
home and
children, while the men hunt to provide for the family. In my
storybook you will see that men have more say than women. The men are
the providers and so are ranked higher, but you will see in the Eskimo
legends that women have the ability to transform into animals. Also,
the women in these Eskimo legends are described as
beautiful. Some women are weak while others are strong. Most of the
women make bad decisions, though, and the men brutally punish them.
Eskimos believed that every
living thing had a spirit and they greatly valued spiritual powers. In
these Eskimo legends, the animals have human traits and the ability
think and feel. In the Eskimo world there
are no boundaries between animals and humans. A human can marry an
animal if they desire! All my stories involve unhappy relationships
between humans and animals or humans and humans.
The stories I have found in Thompson's book convey the spirit of the
Eskimos and illustrate the connection between the animal and human
world.
Let me introduce you to chief Rain Cloud, a member of an Alaskan Eskimo
tribe, who will be
narrating the stories.
"Join us, everyone!" the
old man shouted over the small crackling
fire. It was time for the chief to share his stories. The stories of
all
the generations had been passed down to him. He waited patiently for
his large family to gather. As soon as everyone arrived inside the
igloo, the chief began....
"These are the stories of
generations past. They are part of who we
are, our history. Theses stories describe the union between the animal
and human world. Just as in life, these stories do not all end well,
but we can learn from their mistakes, if we choose to."
