FASCINATING NATIVE AMERICAN RITUALS IN A LITERARY REVOLVING WHEEL PATTERN
FASCINATING NATIVE AMERICAN RITUALS IN A LITERARY REVOLVING WHEEL PATTERN

Summary/Abstract: The present study analyzes rituals and traditional practices in Louise Erdrich’s novel entitled ”The Antelope Wife”. Rituals play a very important part in the Native Americans’ life. In this novel the most fascinating rituals are those dealing with the beading technique. The beads are like an enchanted totem and beading is a web interweaving the characters in the novel. Other rituals refer to dog magic, to practices connected with the act of eating and traditional food, to specific customs related to death and the process of grieving. The circular narrative pattern resembles a revolving wheel, full of odd spokes, interesting Native American rituals, traditional practices and customs which are part of the everyday life of the Ojibwa Native Americans.

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