American Indian Myths and Legends

   This was a fairly interesting reading.  From the beginning of the reading we are told that the earth and it's creatures are very important parts of Native American life. Native Americans often tell myths about animals and nature.  The myths that they tell are often passed down from generation to generation.  In contrast to "industrialized people" Native Americans believe that rivers, mountains, and other objects have their own power and have life.
    Many myths and legends of the Native Americans have been destroyed or erased from history by white culture.  The myths that are still around are now even more powerful for them.  It seems that what ever they were able to hold onto becomes even more important than it would have been. 
   There are many noticeable differences between Native American and white myths.  Native American myths often have mixed up order and character changes.  This shows the differences between the two styles of myth.
   We often take nature for granted and treat it as if it is not important.  We can learn a lot about the Earth and its importance from studying Native American myth.  A deeper understanding of why things happen the way they do can come from studying this culture. 

Post 2 Analysis of Folktales

"The Sociopsychological Analysis of Folktales" by J.L. Fischer is in my eyes a good source to further understand folktales.  Fischer starts off the paper by giving the definition of a folktale.  Fischer provides the definition of a folktale as being any traditional, dramatic, oral narrative.  Myths of the supernatural nature, tales told for entertainment, and "purportedly factual accounts of historical events" are all lumped into the category of folktales.  Fischer provides seemingly endless research to back up every one of the claims in this paper. 
   I found it interesting that tales are much more likely to be modified than myths.  Fischer states that myths are often learned and recited verbatim. While tales are usually given more of a personal touch. When someone changes a detail in a myth it is interpreted as being wrong or falsified.  I find this information interesting because myths and tales are forms of folktales and are held to different standards. 
   Fischer also explains that folktales are known to be a separation between expressive and practical culture.  This separation can be seen in the difference between music and politics. I believe that the separation Fischer talks about in this paper is not as big as it seems. I believe the bottom line is that folktales must be a combination of both expressive and practical culture.  I tend to believe that without the influence of  political, economical, and social structure there would be no folktales.

Aesop, Aristotle, and Animals

   In Edward Clayton's essay he discusses the importance of fables and there uses in both ancient and modern times.  Clayton also presents the idea that animals are used in fables because humans are indeed animals.  Although we are animals as well, Clayton believes it is our superiority and our ability to advance ourselves is what sets us apart from animals.
  Fables are described as being significant parts of Athenian culture.  Clayton tells the story of Demades to show that fables were considered to be respectable pieces of conversation in a political environment. Athenians believed that fables were important enough to speak about and this proves their validity. 
   Humans are animals by nature.  Humans can be seen as being superior to animals because we can advance ourselves in times of need.  Fables use animals in part because we are all animalistic in nature.  The fables we read often have strong animals dominating weaker animals.   This in my opinion is true with humans.  We often see stronger and smarter people doing better for themselves while weaker and less intelligent people tend to suffer.  The use of animals helps us relate to the lesson being taught. Aristotle's main difference between humans and animals is humans need for reasoning.  This key difference separates us.  Humans relate to the animals in fables because the traits these animals have are human traits.
   I believe that Clayton's analysis of fables and their use of animals was spot on.  He worked to give credibility to fables. Fables can be seen as stories for children, but on the contrary can be very valuable lessons.  Fables often use animals as the main characters so humans can relate to the lessons learned.  Clayton also gives justifications for the use of animals.  He also explains the similarities and differences between humans and animals.