The Sacred Hoop: Recovering the Feminine in American Indian Traditions

tales and songs, which may be humorous, soothing, pedagogical,
or entertaining. In this category are lullabies, corn-grinding and
ditch-digging songs, jokes, pourquoi tales, “little” stories, and
stories with contemporary settings. Included here, too, are those
delightful dances called ’49s. 23 All but the ’49s appear in
collections of Indian lore, sometimes masquerading as true
myths or simple songs. This masquerade, of course, does little to
clear up misunderstandings regarding American Indian literature,
for frequently those “myths” that seem childlike are forms
developed for children and bear only a slight resemblance to the
true mythic chants from which they derive.
Between the trivial, popular forms and the ceremonial works
are songs and stories such as various games; incantations and
other simple forms of magic; prose cycles such as the Trickster
tales recorded by Paul Radin; and some journey and foodrelated
songs and legends.
Individual songs may be difficult to classify, though the level
of symbolism they contain and the amount of prescribed ritual
and associated ceremony, the number and special qualifications
of the celebrants, and the physical setting and costume can help
distinguish one kind from another. To classify any given song,
though, one needs more than a nodding acquaintance with the
locality and the tribe whose song or story is under consideration.
Another important factor to consider in classification of a
song is the relative secrecy of parts or all of the ceremony,
especially when tourists, cameras, or tape recorders are present.
The amount of secrecy will vary to some extent from tribe to
tribe, some being more open than others, but some secrecy is
nearly always the rule.
Another such indicator, particularly valuable for classroom
work, is the source of the song or story. Only very erudite tomes
are likely to have much that is really sacred, and even those have
usually been altered in some way. Popular books are likely to