Diamond Chapter 5 and Browner Chapter 8 Summaries

I could not find Browner Chapter 8 on moodle.

Chapter five of Diamond extensively discusses pow-wow and the role that they have in the inter-tribal community, as well as how pow-wows jump started contemporary Native American Music.  It also talks about the issues with identity that contemporary Native American musicians have when producing music.  The purpose of pow-wows in the intertribal community is to bring different tribes together for special gatherings to honor individuals or groups, or to mark relationships, or to bring the community together to help someone in need.  They also serve the purpose of honoring "traditional values, as well as kinship and intercommunity ties."  She continues to explain the fundamentals of the Pow-wow, however it is important to note that she gives the explanation from an outsider perspective.  Native American music began the transition to contemporary through early recordings of songs performed during pow-wows.  Eventually Native American artists began to produce Native American music that could reach audiences that consisted of both Indians and non-Indians.  Diamond points out that the main issue with Native American contemporary music is that it is not easily identifiable and categorized into genres because the native american music is being swept up by mainstream music. Also artists face an identity issue when composing and performing their music.  Diamond brings to light several questions that artists must ask themselves.  Many of these questions are personal questions that the artist must resolve in order to reach other non-indian listeners or listeners from other tribes.  A common issue that arises is what language to sing in; does the artist perform in his or her native tongue, or should the artist perform in english or voables so that other non-indians and Indians from other tribes can enjoy the song. Throughout this reading, I was reminding myself that this was written from an outsider perspective, therefore some pieces of information are lost because she does not have total knowledge of the subject matter.

Browner Excerpts and Perea: Pow-Wows

In the first Browner excerpt, the insider v. outsider theme is discussed in detail.  In the early twentieth century, Indians were forced onto reservations and the American government sought to regulate Indian culture.  The government tried to limit Indian dancing in particular, however, the government deemed dancing, which was associated with pow-wows, to be acceptable if performed in order to entertain or to gain American acceptance.  Although Commissioner Burke was attempting to restrain Indian culture, as an outsider he was blinded by the entertaining aspects of Indian dancing, yet he failed to see that Indian dancing cannot just be separated from the spiritual and social meanings for the Indians.  Dancing was then legalized with the help of Collier who was fascinated by Dancing. The excerpt goes into further detail about the Lakota tribe and their underground pow-wows.  After the Great Sioux Reservation was established, the government began regulating the culture of the The Lakota people by outlawing specific dances such as the Sun Dance. In order to preserve their culture they took their pow-wows underground. The Anishnaabe people were able to preserve their culture by exploiting the insider v. outsider theme.  To the outsider, pow-wows seem like a "carnival or sporting event" however for an insider, tradition music and dance "even when performed at large competitive pow-wows and for non indian audience, can still exist within the realm of spiritual and sacred."  Outsiders continue to try to control Indian practices, however, outsiders will never be able to comprehend the importance and meaning of the traditional ceremonies that are conducted at pow-wows.

In the second Browner excerpt,  Browner goes into great detail describing what occurs during a pow-wow through careful, explicit observations.  Browner describes the order of events of the Pow-wow, the set-up, the participants and the songs and dances that occur.  However it is obvious that Browner is an outsider looking in on pow-wow.  Even though the observations are so detailed, Browner fails to capture the spiritual and emotional significance of the traditions.  The dances that elicit specific emotions for the Indians are really just entertaining for Browner and the other outsiders. It is apparent that non-Indians will not be able to comprehend the magnitude of certain traditions as much as they try, because they do not have the insider perspective.

Perea on the other hand, is an insider describing the events and traditions of a pow-wow to an outsider reader.  Perea goes into detail about the importance of origin stories;  he says, "My sense of pow-wow origin story is shaped through my participation in the event as a singer and spectator, as well as by readings on pow-wows drawn from ethnomusicology and Native American studies."  Perea's extensive knowledge about the pow-wow is enhanced by the fact that he is an insider, a participant in the traditional pow-wows.  He also discusses how space and music together are important in creating a sense of community, thus the arrangement of the Pow-wow is important.  The arrangement is circular, which is representative of the belief that everything is connected.  At the center is the pow-wow drum because it "gathers singers, dancers and other community members to participate in the pow-wow."  The female singers surround the male singers and the dancers and community members surround the female singers.  Perea extensively discusses the role of the singer, and he is able to utilize his insider experience to describe the importance of the singer.  He also discusses the role of the dancers, from the perspective of a singer. Singers are supposed to "inspire dancers to dance their best all day by selecting good songs and performing them at the right temp and pitch."  His insider point of view was very intriguing and eye opening because it offers a deeper perspective on the traditions of pow-wows.

Native American Myth: "Fire"

"Fire" is a myth from the Alabama Tribe that is a creation story about fire and how fire came to be used by man.  At the beginning of the world, Bear owned Fire, however, Bear took poor care of Fire one day.  Bear and his people had set up fire by a great forest and found tasty acorns.  They left Fire alone in search for more of the tasty acorns, leaving Fire to die out slowly. Man then came walking through the forest and heard Fire crying out in desperation, "feed me!"  Fire told man to feed him sticks, so Man put sticks on the North, South, East and West sides of Fire and Fire was able to grow from eating the sticks.  As it grew, Fire warmed Man and Man also enjoyed watching Fires natural dancing and movement.  Therefore, Fire and Man started their relationship and from that day on, Man owned Fire.

This was an interesting myth; even though it was somewhat short, it got to the main point regarding fire and Man's relationship.  Both fire and man were dependent on each other; one could not thrive without the other.  

I found this myth from americanfolklore.com 

Navajo and the White Mountain Apache Ceremonial Dances

The Navajo and White Mountain Apache have several things in common in regards to their spiritual ceremonial dances and prayers.  First, both the Navajo and Apache’s ceremonial rituals and dances are rooted in healing and reconnecting the individual with nature to heal them spiritually.  The Navajo’s “Blessingway” is performed to prepare an individual for all of the good things that will occur in their life.  Similarly, the Apache’s spiritual ceremonies are deeply rooted in healing an individual and ridding the individual of evil. An example of this is when special dancers drive away evil spirits during the Crown Dance. 

Also, both the Navajo and White Mountain Apache have spiritual dances for women after they begin their menstrual cycle.  In both cultures, ceremonies take place to prepare the girl for womanhood and ultimately motherhood. In the White Mountain Apache culture, the Sunrise Dance is a ceremonial dance that takes place a month after a woman begins her menstrual cycle.  The ceremony takes place to help the woman transition into womanhood. Similarly, The Navajo’s Blessingway covers this part of a woman’s life, as it is considered a good thing, and all good things are celebrated through this spiritual ceremonial dance.

Furthermore, the Navajo and White Mountain Apache music and dances aim to enact the power of the Creator and reference the myths behind the creation of the universe.  These spirits dwell in nature, specifically the mountains. One possible reason for the similarities in the two tribe’s spiritual ceremonies and dances is because they are close in region.  Both tribes are from around the Arizona, New Mexico area, thus it is possible that ideas spread due to the proximity of the tribes and possible interactions.

Religion Summary

The "Religion" article in the Encyclopedia of North American Indians discussed the concept of religion in Native American cultures.  The author of the article highlighted a few key characteristics of Native American "religion" that were very intriguing.  The author points out that describing Indian spiritual practices does not truly constitute the use of the term, "religion" to describe the spirituality of Native Americans.  In fact, many Native Americans do not use the "religion" to articulate their spiritual practices for several reasons.  First, the spirituality as infused with everyday life; every part of Native American life and culture is somehow connected to the spirit world.  Examples used in the article to explain this concept are daily routines and activities such as hunting and killing animals, in which a for of ceremony takes place.  Another important characteristic is that of spatiality meaning that the spiritual practices are relevant to the space and place in which they occur.  These spiritual practices are deeply rooted in space and place which, the author notes, differs from traditional Euro-American traditional religions that revolve around timing.

Native American religion is quite different from traditional Catholicism and Protestantism which fall under Christianity, however it does have some similarities.  It is important to note that is impossible to generalize Native American religion when comparing characteristics to Catholicism and Protestantism.  One difference, as mentioned by the article is that Native American religion is rooted in space and location, where as Christianity revolves around time.  Also, Christians believe in one God and his son Jesus, however Native Americans, depending on the culture, believe in multiple gods or spirits and they pray and worship multiple different gods.  Furthermore, Native Americans hold ceremonies for events that are not celebrated in Christianity such as hunting, killing and eating an animal.  However, Native American cultures do have coming of age ceremonies, as do Christians.  Christians celebrate baptism, first communion, and confirmation, and marriage and anointing of the sick and dying.  These sacraments are celebrating major steps in an individual's life that are also celebrated in many Native American cultures.