Green Grass, Running Water Essay

The novel Green Grass, speed Water is a multifaceted work of art in the literal mother wit. The plot circles or so an Indian tribe i.e. the Blackfoots, while interweaving myths and the stereotypical attitude towards inhering Ameri screws into the macro picture. It takes an extremely sensitive topic and makes sense of it through a comical modal value. by means of the book King raises a voice against the treatment of the aborigine culture and way of life at the hands of the bloodless, through humorous and witty settings, plots and dialogues. One can easily spot the shots that have taken against the government that went onto cheat the ingraineds in the name of friendship, the idea of religion, the hearty stigma that plagues the immanents and a whole lot more.The discord created by coyote is a very intrinsic part of the novel. In the story prairie wolf is the Trickster, and along with him the iv Indians namely L single Ranger, Ishmael, Robin news Crusoe, and Hawkeye set thei r course towards the Blackfoot reservation so they can find things to fix (133). When they come onto the reservation all(prenominal)thing goes topsy-turvy. Through the re-telling of old infixed American legends King puts things into a different perspective for the reader. On top of the indigene legends one go forth be amused by the galore(postnominal) references to biblical stories as well.When it comes to the role of Coyote we know that he is one force that is present long before the world really exists. In the start where there was nothing besides just the water even then the trickster was present, but Coyote was asleep. This in itself can be taken as a testimonial for Coyotes strength and importance. Whenever Coyote enters the plot he manages to wreak havoc by influencing the events and people around him. He does this on more than one occasion by simply devising a capriole or performing a ritual.It is important to note though that Coyote never indulges in require violenc e, his idea of wreaking havoc comes from a very passive stance so to speak. His actions ar based on what the others say and how he can manipulate their words. In the length of the novel Coyote assists in fixing the world through interconnecting European tales with Native ones. He distorts the stories that were brought in by the early settlers by adding the Native flavor to them, thereby coming up with completely new stories altogether.One instance where Coyote and the four Indians try to fix the world is the dkm. The thing to note here is that the damn is not going to mould any fair to the Natives. The government has ignored many things, such as the fault lines, while making the damn. In effect it would bring great problems to the people living around the ara if it were to break.Coyote possesses unavowed powers and can manipulate the environment around him. In one of the scenes from the book Ishmael and Robinson Crusoe ask him whether he has been dancing or singing to which he replies Just a little (341) on both counts. At that point a great earthquake hits the land and causes the stress fractures under the dam to open up.Now, the dam in essence was bad, but once it had been built it would have been worse for it to just fall apart. At one glance one might thing that Coyotes doing was negative rather than positive. However, with the supernatural demolition of the dam, the gourmandize that follows symbolically washes away pieces of the colonial heritage.The Natives are then able to defy the government and reclaim their land. redden Eli, who ended up dying in the process, is a symbol of strength for the remaining people. His cabin stands are an icon for the rest, a piece of their heritage which one of their give died protecting. Even though Coyote caused death, he still managed to give people something to hold onto, something to huddle them closer to their own Native values.Another spokesperson of Coyotes well meaning intentions going wrong is the Jo hn Wayne movie, where he manages to twist and round of golf the story through the use of linguistic violence and ends up completely distorting it. This is good because he inculcates the Native culture and values into the story which is important for the main characters on the Blackfoot reserve.The well known story The secluded Warrior is toyed with. In an attempt to change the world, they end up changing the classic too. In the new mutation the Indians are not the ones who die terrible deaths but John Wayne and Richard Widmar instead. The Natives that had been hunted by the cavalry curtly begin to date back and massacred their assailants. The Natives on the reserve need this kind of reinforcement because they are losing their own values and their heritage and not because they want to, but because they cant find the will to really fight for it.Eli is the only one who really pushes for anything, while the rest themselves have managed to infuse white culture into every part of the ir lives. An example of this is Latisha who is only using her heritage and that too by inventing things that never existed in the Native culture to begin with i.e. selling dog meat burgers (which are really hamburgers) to tourists claiming it to be a Native tradition, when it wasnt.Coyote at times hinders the path of the other four Indians as well. In a way he is the embodiment of the struggle of the Natives against the whites. His actions may at times calculate completely negative, but one must remember that Coyote has been around for a while. And in the end his actions only end up benefiting the Natives of the reserves.Throughout the novel it would seem as though Coyote has induced certain events almost by mistake or through carelessness but once it has run its course it only ends up helping the Blackfoots. In a way it can be said that Coyote has wisdom beyond what most can understand which is why it is possible that he just might know how things will turn out at the culmination. Coyote tends to intertwine the old ways with the new norms. He uses many biblical references (albeit distorting them completely) and the legends of the old age and present them in a very contemporary way. His distortion of the white tales helps by cleansing the invasive stereotypes and stigma that surround the Indians of today.In one instance a dam builder says to Eli Besides, you guys arent real Indians anyway. I mean, you drive cars, watch television, go to hockey games. Look at you. You are a university professor (King 119). This shows the ignorance and misconceptions about the Natives. The general public is completely oblivious of these people, their lives and how they exist. Coyote in his own crazy way tries to do away with this kind of mentality.Thus, Coyote manages to pull the Natives together. The culture and heritage that has been eluding them and at times confusing them is brought back by him. His actions may at times seem overly negative but in the long run they always p rove to be good for the people on the reserve. This is why in totality one can only say that the Tricksters actions are positive and not negative.Work CitedGreen Grass, Running Water Thomas King (1993)