What the hawk means to First Nations peoples who live in its habitat Being a bird species native to most of North America, the red-tailed hawk is a part of many First Nations cultures, most of whom view it as a symbol of courage, strength, and power. Since North America is so vast that there are bound to be discrepancies between the beliefs of different First Nations peoples, this writeup shall deal with the different meanings the hawk can have to different tribes, including some in British Columbia. In some cases, literature about the hawk’s importance to First Nations peoples have been drowned out by websites which do not appear reliable; as such, some pieces of information about the similar and much more well-documented hawk are also included in this writeup. The Cheyenne tribe from the Great Plains believe that hawks warn and protect one of impending danger from one’s enemies.…
The Highs and Lows of “Albatross in the Red Sky on Friday: Does Irrational Superstition on the Great Lakes Make a Difference?” Bowling Green State University, Firelands Campus student Sara E. Cordle wrote an in-depth essay entitled; “Albatross in The Red Sky; Does Irrational Superstition on The Great Lakes Make a Difference?, explaining how the maritime superstitions had a major impact on the seamen of the Great Lakes. The author states how these superstitions can affect the seamen psychologically as well as physiologically and how they can put their crew members in great danger. The author does an excellent job of proving this point over all yet fails to mention much about the opposing side and how, in the author’s defense, it is wrong. By reflecting on the opposing side in greater detail, it may have made the author’s essay slightly stronger.…
The artistic outlooks of both McKay and Jackson portray power and greed. The theme that both the poem and painting support is: too much power and greed will always lead to destruction. In McKay’s poem, “Birds of Prey”, the birds represent greed and their victims represent destruction. Similarly, in Jackson’s painting, “Man Eats World”, the man eating the earth represents power and the earth itself represents destruction. What is more, symbolism plays a colossal role in both the painting and poem as well.…
“Tribe follows tribe, and nation follows nation, like the waves of the sea. It is the order of nature, and regret is useless.” (Chief Seattle) Throughout ancient times, birds have been integrated part of the California’s native indians. There are myths that illustrate the middle world humans live and their ineraction with the worlds above and below.…
Many people believe that Eastern Oregon is void of beauty. The mountains are bare and the air is dry. However, if these folks would follow me to the Snake River for a fishing trip, I think they’d change their minds. If they were to join me on the river, they’d hear the sound of motor boats traveling up the water, and they’d smell the engine exhaust and hear the laughter of the fishermen.…
Jennifer Price’s view of American culture in her essay, “The Plastic Pink Flamingo: A Natural History”, is communicated through quite sarcastic and accusing tones with how she crafts her text. As you read through the piece, Price delivers many facts about the influence of the “pink sensation”, or the flamingo image, in American culture during the 1950s. The way she delivers this, however, gives the impression that she doesn’t particularly favor American culture and her views of the topic aren’t those of positivity and outright worship. First Price begins her piece with how the image of the flamingo came to be such a well-known one throughout the United States, claiming that it “staked two major claims to boldness” (2). During the 1910s and…
If at any moment you found yourself lost in the hefty narrative of Beowulf, treading alongside the many songs and flashbacks, in class on Thursday we discussed the introduction of our “thought” aircraft marshall, Wiglaf. Beginning shortly after line 2626, Wiglaf (a “new to this” young fighter and kinsmen of Beowulf’s) enters stage left with two handheld illuminated beacons to attract our attention and interest; to garner attention to his “wise and fluent words” on our hero. Filled with sorrow, he rallies the troops with images of their bodies “robed in the same burning blaze as my gold-giver’s body” to both establish glory in battle and a debt to fighting alongside Beowulf. Dr. Hedman proposed that Wiglaf’s purpose is to direct our response to a figure like Beowulf during the “speech before the battle cry” and ultimately, Beowulf’s death, moment of the narrative. Inserting the phrase “spoiler alert!”…
Today, it is common for someone to have a fear of heights or flying. This fear keeps many of us grounded, unable to see the world from a different perspective. However, in the novel Song of Solomon, there is no fear when it comes to flight. In fact, taking flight is the main goal for the characters, as it offers them a different approach to their lives. Through the motif of flight, Morrison develops the characters in their quest for identity.…
A Scarlet Ibis is a bird that inhabits tropical South America and the islands of the Caribbean. The book “The Scarlet Ibis” is about a boy named Doodle who cannot run, jump, swim, walk, and a brother that does not accept him. The Golden Kite, and the Silver wind are about a Mandarin who does not accept that the neighboring city of his has a better wall than his own. The Mandarin then keeps changing the wall so that he is more preferable than the other town. “The Scarlet Ibis” by William Hurst and “The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind” by Ray Bradbury share some relationships.…
“The Plastic Pink Flamingo” A new trend for the 1950’s was idolizing pink flamingos. The claims of boldness consisted of rich families vacationing in Florida and the distinct color of the flamingo. American’s were in desperate search of something new, but the author questions the reasons behind the pink flamingo’s popularity when he/she inquires about why the birds were called pink flamingos, why American’s were intrigued by the flashy color, and why flamingos were such a popular trend. Why were the birds called pink flamingos? Flamingo’s are not camillians, they can not change different colors, they will always be pink.…
In “Feathers” by Raymond Carver, a couple goes to a coworker’s house for dinner, where they encounter a peacock, a plaster mold of crooked teeth, and an ugly baby. Afterwards, the couple has a child of their own. Two symbols in the story are the peacock and plaster mold of crooked teeth. The first symbol in this story is the peacock. Peacocks can be described as “birds of 1,000 eyes,” “birds of paradise,” “very colorful,” and “exotic”.…
“Baker’s Bluejay Yarn” Define the following: 1) Gratification: the state of being gratified; great satisfaction (Dictionary.com). 2) Rudiments: the elements or first principles of a subject, or, a mere beginning, first slight appearance, or undeveloped or imperfect form of something (Dictionary.com). 3) Absurdity: the quality or state of being ridiculous or wildly unreasonable (Dictionary.com). Study Questions 1. Who is the narrator of the story?…
Loren Eiseley, American anthropologist, philosopher, and natural science writer, in his essay, “The Bird and the Machine,” juxtaposes life and mechanics. Eiseley describes the relationship between nature and technology, which is growing more prevalent in the modern world. He claims that technology is inferior to technology. His purpose is to illuminate that technology will never be able to replace the natural beauty of life or be capable of portraying the emotions of the bird and other living creatures. Eiseley adopts a reflective and nostalgic tone in order to appeal to the audience of the general public as well as other scientist.…
“If there’d been years and years of nothing, then a bird to sing to you, it would be awful-still, after the bird was still,” (1613) said Mrs. Hale. Mrs. Hale realized what it would have felt like to be alone and to lose the one thing that had kept her company for years and gave her joy. She realized that she would be devastated and would not know how she would…
There is an old saying: “You should never judge a book by its cover.” In “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings: A Tale for Children,” that is precisely what all of the characters do; each character makes their first judgement on the man with enormous wings based on how he appears to them. It is not until the man with wings has lived with Pelayo and his family for some time that they learn more about what exactly he is and what he to them for. It is often easy for someone to make assumptions about someone based on how they look and act.…