27th Annual Student Research Conference
The Liminal Indian: A Study of the Effects of Language on Culture
Miquela M. Taffa
Dr. Alanna Preussner, Faculty Mentor
The Native American Renaissance is a term coined for the proliferation of Native American literary works that began in the 1960s which established Native American literature and identity novels in the public sphere with a broad readership. Although the identity novel contributed greatly in reclaiming Native culture from previous stereotypes, authors since the Renaissance have been working to transform the established identity of native peoples even further. Contemporary Native American writer Gerald Vizenor uses narrative strategies to create a liminal space allowing Native American to exist both within tradition and in a modern world. The use of language in his novel Darkness in St. Louis Bearheart places such terms as Native in a liminal space in the hopes of evolving a nation. Liminality is important to the growth of a dynamic Native community, as a static culture would ultimately endanger the survival of a tribal community.
Keywords: Liminal, Native American, tradition, langage, culture, stereotypes
Topic(s):English
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 111-3
Location: VH 1232
Time: 8:30