Reading Notes: Hero Tales, Part B
Tales of the North American Indians by Stith Thompson (1929).
Gruesome:
Wow, the imagery in the first part of this story was really gruesome. Propping her up by a stick to make her look alive and burning her upper lip to give her a laugh is something straight out of a horror movie.
Short Short Stories:
I like the format of these stories. They are really short, kind of skipping over details, but have some interesting and clever plot points to them. I feel like the boys are starting to build a normal-ish family again.
Scolding Not Working:
It is kind of funny how the father's scolding has absolutely no effect on dissuading the boys. In fact, I think it may even be encouraging them! They hear about this thing that their father wants them to stay away from and it makes them only want to check it out more.
Snakes with Flat Heads:
I am glad that this story had some sort of explanation for the natural phenomenon of snakes having flat heads. I have found that so many native American stories are centered around explaining the world around them. The hero stories were really interesting, but this adds a cool little extra bit to them.
Snake with a flat head. Source: Flickr
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