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Chapter 5 - Climate and American Indian Literature

from Part II - American Literary Climates

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 February 2021

Michael Boyden
Affiliation:
Uppsala Universitet, Sweden
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Summary

The complexity of human roles and responsibilities in the health and continuance of Earth and all its life has been explored by Indigenous writers and activists from a wide variety of perspectives. Of particular importance is the profound relationship between humans and water, the fundamental compact on which all others rely. Through an analysis of literary representations of water, this chapter examines Indigenous stories that center relationships and responsibilities, recognizing the interlocking systems on which all life relies. Authors Linda Hogan (Chickasaw), Leslie Marmon Silko (Laguna), and Tommy Pico (Kumeyaay) engage these concerns by connecting characters and their current conflicts of drought and/or environmental degradation to story traditions about the perils of imbalance and the repercussions of human greed. The life of water represented by seasonal rains, drought, and dynamic waterways reminds readers of the vital roles humans and the more-than-human world play in the climate cycles that support environmental wellbeing.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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