Tayo in Ceremony: The Gray Area for Preserving Native American Culture
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1412.15Keywords:
the Pueblos, native Americans, modern Americans, Laguna Pueblo Reservation, The Pueblo of LagunaAbstract
This paper examines the themes of cultural preservation and integration in Leslie Marmon Silko’s novel Ceremony, focusing on the character Tayo and his role in bridging the gap between Native American and modern American cultures. Historically, Native Americans have faced isolation, whether by choice or by force, leading to economic, social, and cultural challenges. Government policies such as the Dawes Act and efforts to assimilate Native Americans into modern American society through education and religious conversion have disrupted traditional ways of life and led to a legacy of mistrust and marginalization. Ceremony portrays a path forward, advocating for a balance between maintaining cultural integrity and embracing necessary changes for survival. The novel emphasizes the importance of cultural adaptation and integration, suggesting that Native Americans can thrive without losing their identities by engaging with the broader American society. Through Tayo’s journey of healing and his interactions with the medicine man Betonie, Silko illustrates the potential for cultural hybridity to foster resilience and understanding. By presenting a nuanced vision of coexistence, Ceremony calls for mutual respect and collaboration between Native Americans and modern Americans. The novel encourages a reimagining of cultural identity that is inclusive and adaptable, ensuring that Native American traditions remain vibrant and relevant in a changing world. This paper argues that cultural survival depends not on isolation but on the ability to adapt and integrate, creating a future where multiple cultures can coexist and enrich each other.
References
Anderson, N. (2008). The isolation and assimilation of Native Americans in Herbert and Redding’s Natoma. Canadian Undergraduate Journal of Musicology, 1, 3-4.
Arnold, E. L. (1999). An ear for the story, an eye for the pattern: Rereading Ceremony. Modern Fiction Studies, 45(1), 69-92, 273-274.
Cutchins, D. (1999). “So that the Nations may become genuine Indian”: Nativism and Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony. Journal of American Culture, 22(4), 77-89.
Dozier, E. P. (1970). The Pueblo Indians of North America. Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Eggan, F. (1950). Social Organization of the Western Pueblos. University of Chicago Press.
Ganser, A. (2008). Violence, trauma, and cultural memory in Leslie Silko's Ceremony. Atenea, 24(1), 150-151.
Perry, B. (2008). Silent Victims: Hate Crimes Against Native Americans. University of Arizona Press.
Ruppert, J. (1995). Mediation in Contemporary Native American Fiction. University of Oklahoma Press.
Stiffarm, L. A., & Lane, P., Jr. (1999). The demography of Native North America: A question of American Indian survival. In The State of Native America - Genocide, Colonization and Resistance (pp. 23-53).
Taylor, J. B., & Kalt, J. P. (2005). American Indians on Reservations: A Databook of Socioeconomic Change Between the 1990 and 2000 Censuses. Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development, Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University.
