David Slifer

Dr. Timothy Poland

ENGL 450

12 April 2017

Importance of Tribal Identity in Native American Literature

Many of the great works of American literature deal with the importance of the individual

in context to their surroundings. They often deal with characters who seek separation from their

home in order to define themselves and their individuality. Native American literature seeks to

contrast this belief of the individual against the world by focusing on what William Bevis, in his

paper entitled “Native American Novels: Homing In”, calls “‘homing’ plots” (Bevis 581). The

idea is that Native Americans write from a different perspective than their contemporary White

American authors, and believe that the characters either come home and reconnect with their

tribal identities, or fail in the process. Various Native authors handle the issue in their own

distinct ways, but each one ultimately identifies the three determining factors that represent tribal

identity. Bevis correctly categorizes these as, “society, past, and place” (Bevis 586). By looking

at various characters and issues within some Native novels, it becomes apparent how each of

these aspects of tribal identity form an integral part of why the characters either fail or succeed.

Whereas Nanapush in Tracks has a distinct connection with his past and seeks to educate the

other around him, John Smith in Indian Killer is disconnected from any sense of tribal society

and has no sense of identity. Characters such as Lionel in Green Grass, Running Water begin the

novel disassociated with their tribe, but by using the Sun Dance as a central place, Thomas King

brings them home and reconnects them with their tribe.

 One of the most important aspects of this “homing” plot is the necessity for the Native

American to be well versed in the social and political aspects of their particular tribe. These can

include the oral histories of the tribe that detail everything from their past, to the ceremonies that

serve to indoctrinate the individuals in how things are to be done in any given situation. Without

these societal aspects in place, the Native will be lost in a world that either shows nothing but

apathy to them, or seeks to actively destroy them. This is something that must be taught from

birth to the individual within the tribe, and is not something that can just be absorbed through

other means later on in life. John Smith in Indian Killer was never taught the rules and ideas that

afford him the possibilities of knowing his specific tribe’s societal influences. His great struggle

is this loss of tribal norms that he was never allowed to experience. When he meets other Native

Americans, he typically says he is whatever tribe best suits the occasion. Upon meeting Marie at

a pow-wow, he states, “He was afraid she would discover that he was an Indian without a tribe”

(Alexie 35). This fear stems from him being ripped from his mother and given to a white couple

who assumed everything he needed to learn about being an Indian could be taught from a

homogenization of all Native cultures. Bevis believes that, “Self-realization is not accomplished

by the individual or by romantic bonding only; that would be incomprehensible” (Bevis 586).

Even though he meets Marie, a hardline Native American woman who is at one with all aspects

of her tribal identity, this relationship is not enough to build a sense of identity because he knows

nothing of his own tribe or society. Marie is able to challenge the Euro-American appropriation

in Indian Killer because of her cultural identity, but John is forced to watch from the outside due

to his lack thereof. He realizes this when he uses the analogy of paragraphs with relation to his

tribal identity:
 But he also knew that he shared genetics and common experiences with

his mother, that they were paragraphs that belonged next to each other.

John saw his tribe as a series of paragraphs that all had the same theme.

They all belonged to the same tribe, shared the same blood. (Alexie 291)

John Smith knows that he is missing the aspects of his culture that form a societal bond to the

other Natives he sees on a daily basis. It is something he will never be able to achieve, and it is

part of the reason he chooses to end his life. Alexie paints him as both a mental disturbed and

tragic character who was never given the tools to succeed in a post-colonial world because he

was never given the opportunity to learn about his tribe and their society. As Bevis states, “the

first assumption of tribalism is that the individual is completed only in relation to others” (Bevis

587). Since John was never given any chance to form a relationship to his tribe, he is an example

of how important these ties are to the Native American community.

It is only by learning from the past that Native Americans are able to form a society

within their tribes. Part of what makes John Smith so tragic is his lack of connection to his past.

Nanapush and Fleur in Tracks are examples of characters with a strong understanding of the past,

and how the past shapes the present and future. In Tracks, Louise Erdrich shows how important

the memories and experiences from the past are to the characters. While Pauline actively

distances herself from her heritage, Nanapush is insistent that this knowledge be instilled in the

younger generation. He sees Fleur as, “the funnel of our history” (Erdrich 178), and seeks to

actively teach her about the past of their tribe. By doing so, Nanapush is forcing the tribe to

survive despite the encroaching of the Whites onto their land. Despite Fleur being a wild and

uncontrollable force of nature, she listens to everything Nanapush has to say about their lives.

Bevis identifies this as, “The source of respect for the past in Indian life and novels is respect for
authority” (Bevis 589). She understands that their shared ancestry is part of what ties her to the

world she lives in, and without it, she will cease to live a truly Native life. The entire novel of

Tracks can be viewed as a plea from Nanapush to Fleur’s daughter Lulu to return to the tribe

after being away at boarding school. He sees this story of how they lost their land to white

colonialism as a way of connecting Lulu to her tribal identity. By tying her into the story and

showing her how the past has happened, Nanapush shows what Bevis says, “The tribe, which

makes meaning possible, endures through time and appeals to the past for authority” (Bevis 587).

Fleur is the funnel, but Lulu is the future of the tribe. It is through the experiences of the past that

Lulu must learn about her tribe to become a contributing member to it, and, more importantly, to

regain her tribal identity that will help shape her in the trying years to come. He did everything in

his power to bring Lulu back into the fold. Unlike Fleur who “was too young and had no stories

or depth of life to rely upon” (Erdrich 7) when her family died, Nanapush wants to give Lulu the

past which was denied to Fleur and John Smith in order to show her how to shape her own tribal

identity.

White American novelists mainly see place as a setting in which the action takes place

within their respective novels. Native American novelists conversely use place as something

“necessary to the protagonist’s growth and pride” (Bevis 592). This idea of place being an idea

wrapped up in a physical location is central to many Native American novels. For authors such

as Thomas King in Green Grass, Running Water, this idea is key for the characters within the

novel who have become distant from their tribe. In the novel, Lionel has attempted to distance

himself from the tribe by living in a post-colonial world wholly separate from his roots. He has

essentially lost his tribal identity and refused to spend time on the reservation with his family.

This disconnect from the place where his family and ancestry are intrinsically founded invokes a
loss of identity. His Aunt Norma harps on this fact when she compares him to his Uncle Eli.

While Eli left to live in Toronto, “He came home, nephew. That’s the important part. He came

home” (King 67). What is important in this novel is not how far each character went, but the

centripetal motion apparent in many Native novels that leads the characters back to the center of

their culture. In GGRW, that center is the Sun Dance. All the backstories, characters, and events

take place around the Sun Dance. It represents almost a cleansing of the spirit for Lionel who has

dedicated most of his life to getting away from his tribal identity. Bevis sees this as an integral

part in a character’s identity when he states, “the protagonists succeed largely to the degree in

which they reintegrate into the tribe, and fail largely to the degree in which they remain alone”

(Bevis 593). Lionel began his journey in the novel isolated from the tribe, but eventually finds

his way back to the center of it all when he finally attends the Sun Dance. The importance of

place in relation to identity is even seen by the white characters in the novel. Bill Bursum and

Clifford Sifton no longer see Eli or Lionel as “Indians” anymore, with Sifton stating, “Besides,

you guys aren’t real Indians anyway. I mean, you drive cars, watch television, go to hockey

games. Look at you (Eli). You’re a university professor” (King 155). Since both Eli and Lionel

lived off reservation for any amount of time and did things contrary to Bursum’s and Sifton’s

preconceived ideas of what an “Indian” is, they essentially lost their tribal identity in their eyes.

They had become separated from the place that gives them history and cultural awareness. When

Lionel confronts George at the Sun Dance and drives him off, he has finally regained the sense

of place that leads to his tribal identity. He is whole again as a result of returning to the center of

it all, and has found his place in the world once again.

Bevis correctly identifies that, “The typical Indian plot recoils from a white world in

which the mobile Indian finds no meaning” (Bevis 598). Without a sense of society, past, and
place, a Native American character can find no solace in a post-colonial world. These novels and

characters echo a very real sentiment within the Native community that emphasizes these three

core ideas, and seeks to teach those within their sphere of influence how important they are.

Characters like John Smith show how dangerous a lack of tribal identity can be to a Native

individual, but Lionel contrasts that image by showing someone who has reconnected with his

tribe and found meaning in his life. Each author finds their own voice and own tale in order to

push for the survival of the Native American way of life and all the traditions and cultural

heritage that comes with that. Even though they live in a predominately Euro-American world,

their sense of identity is key to their perseverance and longevity. Within the confines of these

novels, the Native American actively engages in an attempt to find their tribal identity, and

therefore flourish as a community that is alive and thriving.

Works Cited
Alexie, Sherman. Indian Killer. New York: Warner Book, Inc., 1998.
Bevis, William. "Native American Novels: Homing In." Swann, Brian and Arnold Krupat.
Recovering the Word: Essays on Native American Literature. Berkely: University of
California Press, 1987. 580-621.
Erdrich, Louise. Tracks. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc., 1988.
King, Thomas. Green Grass, Running Water. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1993.