现代大学英语第5册(精读5)Lesson+9+The+way+to+Rainy+Mountain

Lesson 9 The Way to Rainy Mountain

N. Scott Momaday

Teaching AimsBackground about the author, Kiowa Organization of the text Characteristic of the language Extension: introduce your ancestor-Cantonese, Hakka, Teochew

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Pre-class QuestionsT E X T

Most Native American tribes believed in several gods - god of sun, god of earth, rain god, etc. Discuss how the acceptance of several gods instead of one omnipotent God guided Native American culture.[om'nip t nt]万能的，全能的Introduce your ancestor--Cantonese, Hakka, Teochew

T E X T

Interview an Elder of your family. Did a member of your family immigrate here from another place? What important myths or stories have been handed down in your family? What was the most significant event in your Elder's life?Discuss the special meanings of horse ,buffalo, etc. in Kiowa culture and certain animals in yours

T E X T

The author : Biography and his book Name: N. Scott Momaday Birth Date: February 27, 1934 Place of Birth: Lawton, Oklahoma, United States Nationality: American Ethnicity: Native American Gender: Male Occupations: author, school administrator

http://hakka.nctu.edu.tw/hakka-i-facultywebs/iristuan/course/09Approaches%

Momaday N. Scott is wholly absorbed in his Native Indian culture throughout his life

* He was born with an Indian origin.* He spent his childhood in several Indian reservations and developed intense interest and passion in the Indian culture and tradition. * His career centers around the Indian culture and tradition. * His works are informed of the Native Indian traditions.

Prof. Momaday lifelong journey1934 born in Lawton, Oklahoma. 1935 moved to Arizona 1958 graduated from the University of New Mexico and taught on the Apache reservation at Jicarilla 1963 earned a doctorate and taught at the University of California at Santa Barbara 1969 moved to the University of California at Berkeley 1973 left Berkeley for Stanford 1982 ---taught at the University of Arizon

Primary works

House Made of Dawn,1968 The way to Rainy Mountain,1969 Angle of Geese and other poems ,1974 The Gourd Dancer,1976 The Names: a memoir,1976 The Ancient Child,1989 In the Presence of the Sun,1992 (a collection of prose and poetry)

“The Indian world is full of aesthetic values, art. My father was an artist, a painter, and he taught painting to the children at Jemez Pueblo. They exhibited all over the world. They became famous for their art. He once said to me, ”You know, Scott, I have never known an Indian child who couldn‘t draw.“ I believe that. I haven’t either. That seems intrinsic somehow. That‘s a real part of the Indian world, this love of symmetry.对称(性), 匀称, 整齐 and composition. It’s a great thing. That has been important to me as well. Indian people have a strong sense of humor. It‘s not easily understood by other people, but it’s there and I love that. That‘s been a part of my life too.

” ------Momaday N. Scott

Comments on MormadayNew York Times Wallace Stegner

Written with great dignity, the book has something about it of the timeless, of that long view down which the Kiowa look to their myth-shrouded beginnings.

"I know nothing quite like this book, and nothing of the Indian that is at once so authentic and so moving.

Kiowa - Nomadic Warriors of the Plains 1650, Black Hills 1807, Arkansas, Red River, Texas, New Mexico 1867, a reservation in southwestern Oklahoma 1901 Kiowa land in Oklahoma was opened for white settlement 1968 Kiowa Tribal Council is formed Today, there are more than 12,000 Kiowa, many of whom live in Oklahoma and other areas of the Southwestern United States. The tribe is governed by the Kiowa Indian Council.

The Kiowa lived a typical Plains Indian lifestyle. Mostly nomadic, they survived on buffalo meat and gathered vegetables, living in teepees, and depended on their horses for hunting and military uses.

His book Momaday links the survival of his people to their ability to remember, preserve and pass on stories. Taking the idea one step further, Momaday models necessary personal involvement in the stories through the use of imagination. That is, to make sense of and find a place in the contemporary world, one must connect on a personal level with the stories of one's past. All families have their Rainy Mountain, the end of their journey, their spiritual "Home."

His book--The way to the Rainy MountainThe Setting Out, which consists of early Kiowa legends and anthropological studies on the Kiowa people.

The Going On, the second part, continues with the theme of Kiowa mythology, and discusses the origins of Tai-me and the Sun Dance Ritual.

The Closing In, the last section, describes the end of the Kiowa golden age and has a lot to do with the death of the Kiowa culture.

Each chapter is also pided into three parts: The first consists of the mythological stories of the Kiowas, the second focuses on the actual history of the Kiowa tribe, and the third part is the author's own observations from when he retraced the long journey to Rainy Mountain his ancestors had taken. As the book draws to an end, these parts start to combine, the mythology becomes more historical, the history becomes more personal, and the personal tales become more mythological.

His Influence I get a kick out of hearing people say this, but Momaday has been referred to as the Shakespeare of Native American letters. And I think that phrase captures something of his significance, in the sense of a baseline excellence - as a writer. He's a person with a tremendously imagistic mind, but he loves the voice in what he does.