An Overview of Native American Oral Literature::

Myths

Trickster-Transformer Tales

The trickster figure in American Indian mythology takes various animal forms. In the Arctic and Northwest he is Raven; in the Great Lakes and Southeast he is Hare; among the Blackfoot on the Northern Plains he is Old Man; among the Sioux of the Dakotas he is Spider; and in the Southwest and Plateau he is Coyote.

In the words of Trickster scholar Paul Radin, the trickster is "undifferentiated" - he can shape-shift or change his form into anything he wishes. In disguise he can get up to all kinds of mischief, for good and for bad (Radin 1956).¹

The scholar Alan R. Velie perfectly describes the trickster figure in both non-Indian as well as American Indian mythology:

"The trickster is one of the oldest and most widespread of mythological and literary figures. He is found almost universally among American Indian tribes, and he appears in European, Asian and African folklore as well. As the name implies, the trickster is, on one level - probably the most important - an amoral practical joker who wanders about playing pranks on unsuspecting victims. But he is far more complex than that. The same figure, in the same set of tales, appears to be alternately an evil spirit and a benevolent deity, a mortal and a god, a creator and a destroyer, a culture hero and a villain. At times he is an ideal citizen, a model to tribal members; at others he is a totally amoral being who flouts the most sacred taboos with impunity" (Velie 1991: 44).²

Radin's book contains a popular Trickster story that finds form in numerous tribes across North America. He provides a Winnebago version. In it, a hungry trickster persuades some naive ducks to dance for him while he sings. However, he insists they keep their eyes closed as they dance. This supreme con artist gets the ducks to keep their eyes closed by warning them that if they disobey him, their eyes will turn red. As the obedient ducks happily comply with his demands and dance with closed eyes, the trickster quickly devours them all until a clever duck secretly opens his eyes and alerts the others, who escape.

Trickster tales served humourous, moral and sacred purposes. The above is a humourous tale, but another trickster tale follows on the next page. It describes the important role Trickster played in the development of an entire nation - the Lakota - and as such is a sacred text. Though Spider, the Lakota trickster figure, decieved the people to come upon the surface of the world, if he hadn’t done so then the Lakota would not be here today. In Lakota tradition, Spider is also credited with having given all the animals, including humans, their particular physical forms and he gave each species their own unique language or form of communication:

Notes::

• 1 - Paul Radin, ed. 1956. The Trickster: A Study in American Indian Mythology. New York: Schoken.
• 2 - Alan R. Velie. 1991. American Indian Literature: An Anthology. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press. Revised Edition.