Title: Captured in the middle : tradition and experience in contemporary Native American writing /
Authors: Larson, Sidner J., 1949-
Publisher: University of Washington Press,
Year: 2000
Subjects: American literature Indian authors History and criticism Theory, etc.; American literature History and criticism Theory, etc.; Indians of North America Intellectual life.; Group identity in literature.; Experience in literature.; Indians in literature
Abstract: "Sidner Larson's Captured in the Middle embodies the very nature of Indian storytelling, which is circular, drawing upon the personal experiences of the narrator at every turn. Larson teaches about contemporary American Indian literature by describing his own experiences as a child on the Fort Belknap Reservation in Montana and as a professor at the University of Oregon." "Larson describes Indians today as post-apocalyptic peoples who have already lived through the worst imaginable suffering. By confronting the issues of fear, suppression, and lost identity through literature, Indians may finally move forward to imagine and create for themselves a better future, serving as models for the similarly fractured cultures found throughout the world today."--Jacket.
Contents: Introduction -- House made of cards : the construction of American Indians -- American Indians, authenticity, and the future -- Vine Deloria, Jr. : reconstructing the logic of belief -- Constituting and preserving self through writing -- Louise Erdrich : protecting and celebrating culture -- James Welch's Indian lawyer -- Pragmatism and American Indian thought -- Conclusion.