Mankiller Response

Obviously, as I am sure most have said or thought, Wilma Mankiller's autobiography strays from the norm by including almost half its content being Cherokee/Native American history instead of her life. I see this as an important feature in making her story more informative of a historically ignored culture, as well as a necessity in making her story more marketable and useful. This statement may seem borderline insulting to her life in regard to the 'making it more marketable' part, but in the context of the Native American culture that has been so hated upon and subdued, it is undeniably crucial and beneficial to have her life stories complement the stories of history and present that explain the present situation of the Cherokee tribe. It's really not an autobiography so much as a hybrid blend of two genres, autobio and historical text.

I love Wilma's use of traditional cherokee story tales at the beginning of each chapter. The stories are captivating and informative to traditional Cherokee beliefs and rituals. Not only that, but the stories followed by her own present-time writing (more so in certain chapters than in others) demonstrates the contrast between traditional and contemporary Native American societies, which is a huge, noteworthy difference. Through learning in detail about the tribulations Cherokees have been through from the Trail of Tears in the 1930's to the more recent Indian Relocation of the 1950's, I feel as though I have a more complete understanding of Native Americans than I would if only having had strictly Mankiller's autobiography. And while the historical information provided in the text is certainly detailed and fully informative, Mankiller's personal accounts of alienation and struggle and eventual triumph are by far the most revealing of what I believe will help us all most in this program in terms of understanding the most recent Cherokee struggle against a history of hard times, and empathizing with the Cherokee's we meet on this trip. I look forward to meeting Wilma and asking her more questions about her life and the car crash and why she ran away to Grandma Sittons and... you get the picture.