Unit Terms
A story or account of events that can be real or imagined.
What is a narrative?
The type of figurative language Native American storytellers have a “keen awareness” of.
What is metaphor?
A person, animal, or figure who takes part in a story.
What is a character?
The most intense or turning point of the story — when the conflict reaches its peak.
What is the climax?
The position or viewpoint from which a story is told or an idea is shared.
What is perspective?
The three elements of the cycle of life reflected in Native American narratives.
What are Birth, Death, Rebirth?
“Her smile was sunshine.”
What is metaphor?
The beginning of the story where characters, setting, and main conflict are introduced.
What is the exposition?
Stories passed down by word-of-mouth.
What is Oral Tradition?
Two things Native Americans typically teach in their narratives.
What are (1) Moral lessons and (2) Practical information about the natural world
“He ran as fast as a cheetah.”
What is simile?
The setting of "Snow" by Julia Alvarez.
Acceptable answers: a Catholic school in New York, the Cuban Missile Crisis
The author’s or narrator’s unique way of expressing ideas; their style, tone, and personality in writing.
What is Voice?
"American Indian literature also reflects a view of the natural world that is more ___________________ than the one typically seen in Western literature"
What is inclusive (Other acceptable answer: cyclical, respectful)
Words or phrases that appeal to the senses (sight, sound, touch, taste, smell) to create a vivid picture.
What is imagery?
TWO literary devices present within the following excerpt from "Snow"
"...the Sisters of Charity, hefty women in long black gowns and bonnets that made them look peculiar, like dolls in mourning."
What are simile and imagery?
Customs, beliefs, or practices passed down from generation to generation.
What is Tradition?
TWO reasons Native American literature was not considered "authentic".
(1) It was difficult to translate the stories from Indigenous languages
(2) The stories were passed down through oral tradition
(3) Western scholars assumed the Native Americans "had no literature"
“The wind whispered through the trees.”
What is personification?
The french word for "resolution".
What is denouement?