Lesson9-The-Way-to-Rainy教学讲解课件.ppt

1、 The Way to Rainy MountainN.Scott N.Scott MomadayMomaday(1934-)Momaday is a Kiowa Indian by birth,and yet he was educated formally in the mainstream American culture of the 1950s and 60sABOUT THE AUTHORMy father was a great storyteller and he knew many stories from the Kiowa oral tradition,says N.Sc

2、ott Momaday,a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and Regents Professor of English at the University of Arizona.He told me many of these stories over and over because I loved them.But it was only after I became an adult that I understood how fragile they are,because they exist only by word of mouth,alwa

3、ys just one generation away from extinction.Thats why I began to write down the tales my father and others had told me.ABOUT THE AUTHORAs a writer,teacher,artist and storyteller,Momaday has devoted much of his life to safeguarding oral tradition and other aspects of Indian culture.1934-born in Lamto

4、n,Kiowa county,southwestern Oklahoma.His father,a well known artist/painter,was a Kiowa and was deeply committed to his Kiowa heritage.According to Momaday,his father was“a great storyteller and he knew many stories from the Kiowa oral tradition“.His mother,a well known painter and writer,was one-ei

5、ghth Cherokee and seven-eighths Euro-American blends.N.Scott Momadays parents,Alfred and Natachee,about the time of their marriage in 1933.19361946 lived with his parents in several different southwestern communities where he was in close contact with Native American as well as Hispanic and Anglo ch

6、ildren and thus became familiar with different cultures,especially Plains Indian cultures.1952 1963 attended the University of New Mexico,majoring in political science with minors(副修科目)in English and speech.Then he went to study law at the University of Virginia for some time.He graduated in 1958 wi

7、th a B.A.in political science.Between 1959 and 1963 he did his doctoral studies in English at Stanford.1963 1969 worked as an assistant and later associate professor of English at the University of California,Santa Barbara.There he taught American Indian studies and was very much concerned with the

8、Indian oral tradition In the past years,Momaday has taught English and given lectures at the University of California,Berkeley,Stanford University,University of Arizona,Princeton,and Columbia In addition to be a teacher,Momaday is also a writer,artist and storyteller.As a distinguished painter,he ex

9、plores traditional Indian motifs on canvas.His achievements in literature and his major works Momaday is considered one of the foremost Native American writers and he is the first American Indian writer to receive a Pulitzer Prize for literature.1962 an Academy of American Poets prize for his poem“T

10、he Bear”.1969 the Pulitzer Prize for his novel House Made of Dawn(1968)His major works include:House Made of Dawn(1968),The Way to Rainy Mountain(1969),The Names:A memoir(1976),and a collection of prose and poetry In The Presence of the Sun(1992).The peopleThe peopleA Nomadic tribe The Kiowa lived i

11、n and a r o u n d t h e Te x a s panhandle.This includes western Oklahoma and northeast New Mexico.They were nomadic buffalo hunters.They were the finest horsemen in the world.The peopleThe peopleA Nomadic tribe Being nomads the Kiowa moved all the time.They moved to follow buffalo herds.Buffalo mea

12、t was their most important food.They also gathered plants,roots and berries to eat when they could find them.WarlikeWarlike War was their sacred business and they loved wars by nature.They were famous warriors.Their long distance raids(entrance侵入)could go all the way down into Mexico and way up almo

13、st to Canada.They organized themselves by age.This is called age grade social organization.The boys and young mens organizations were the most important.The men hunted and the women did the gathering.The dress Here is a nice example of Kiowa dress.This lady is wearing an elk麋鹿tooth blouse.The elk te

14、eth are sewn onto the blouse.The blouse is probably made of elk skin.Elk teeth and skin was believed to be powerful love magic.A woman wearing elk skin and teeth was irresistible to men.The Kiowa are famous for their beadwork.They would bead all kinds of things.Beaded Kiowa moccasins(A soft leather

15、slipper traditionally worn by Native Americans.)A beaded horse halter(缰绳,（马）笼头)K i o w a b a b y i n a papoose(背婴儿的袋子)Look at the colorful blue and red beadwork above the babys head and on the brown leather parts.This is like a backpack.Indian mothers would carry the baby in the papoose around with

16、them on their backs.the most spectacular and important religious ceremony of the Kiowas and other Plains Indians.It was considered to be very festive and sacred.Ordinarily held once a year at the time of the Summer Solstice when the sun is at its strongest.the Kiowa Sun Dance celebration last ten da

17、ys,with six getting ready or preparation/fasting days,followed by four dancing days.Two of the most important symbolic rites are the sacrifice of a buffalo and to hang Tai-me for worshipSymbolic meaning:a continuity between life and death-a regeneration,a cycle of symbolic deaths and rebirthsA human

18、 figure of no more than two feet in length,dressed in a ceremonial costume of feathers,skins,beads and pendants(垂饰)Also Referred to as Medicine tree(the most powerful medicine in the tribe)Only exhibited and viewed at the time of the annual Sun Dance ritual Believed by the Kiowas to have magical pow

19、er Role in the spiritual lifeAn essential sacrifice in the Sun Dance ritualBelieved by the plains Indians a sacred animal,wise and powerful,even closer to the creator than humans Buffalo songs,dances and feast accompany the Sun DanceIn the stories of Plain Indians,the buffalo began the Sun Dance rit

20、ual first and taught people its benefit.Role in the daily life:Food Clothing ShelterUtensils(from fly swatters苍蝇拍to childrens toys)The origin of the Kiowas can be dated back to 300 years.The ancestors of the Kiowas lived in the mountains of western Montana in the 17th century.By about 1700,the tribe

21、 moved toward the southeast to the Crows land and settled into the Black Hills-Acquired horses and became a nomadic tribe-acquired Tai-me and began to worship the sunFurther into The Wichita Mountains (the end of 18th century)-reached the golden time of their history-formed an alliance with the Coma

22、nches and controlled the whole of the Southern Plains pictureA massive rock and possibly an remnant of a volcanic neckAbout 40 million years old1,267 feet above the nearby Belle Fouche RiverKnown by several Plains Indian tribes as Bears Lodge A place to carry out the sacred Sun Dance ritual by the K

23、iowa people and many of the Plains people until 1887 P l a y e d a r o l e i n shaping Indian legendsA s a c r e d s i t e o f w o r s h i p f o r m a n y American IndiansFactors having contributed to the decline of the tribe:Deadly diseases brought about by European immigrants:smallpox天花,measles麻疹,

24、diphtheria白喉Military defeat by the US Calvary and consequent humiliationForced removal to reservationsDeprivation of the right to practice the essential act of their faith(Sun Dance rituals were forbidden.)Massive killing of Buffalo herds by the whitesWhat is the main idea of Para.1?What special mea

25、ning has the landscape to the author?What are the major features of the landscape?The main idea of the first paragraph The opening paragraph of the essay is a lyrical description of Rainy Mountain,the place where the authors grandmother lived and died,together with other Kiowas.Para1Para1What are th

26、e major features of the What are the major features of the landscape?landscape?1)hardest weather -winter:blizzards -spring:hot tornadic winds -summer:the prairie like an anvils edge,brittle and brown grass,steaming foliage writhing in fire2)lonelinessA single knoll rises out A single knoll rises out

27、 of the plain in of the plain in Oklahoma,north and west Oklahoma,north and west of the Wichita Range.of the Wichita Range.For my people,the Kiowa,For my people,the Kiowa,it is an old landmark,it is an old landmark,and they gave it the and they gave it the name Rainy name Rainy Mountain.”He goes on

28、Mountain.”He goes on to say“Loneliness is to say“Loneliness is an aspect of the land.an aspect of the land.All things in the plain All things in the plain are isolate;there is no are isolate;there is no confusion of objects in confusion of objects in the eye,but one hill or the eye,but one hill or o

29、ne tree or one man.one tree or one man.To look upon that To look upon that landscape in the early landscape in the early morning,with the sun at morning,with the sun at your back,is to lose your back,is to lose the sense of proportion.the sense of proportion.Your imagination comes Your imagination c

30、omes to life,and this,you to life,and this,you think,is where Creation think,is where Creation was begun.”was begun.”1.S1 A single 1.S1 A single knoll knoll.the Wichita.the Wichita RangeRange 1)knoll:a small 1)knoll:a small round hillround hill 2)range:a series 2)range:a series of connected of conne

31、cted mountains considered mountains considered as a single systemas a single system 3)3)一座孤零零的小山一座孤零零的小山拔地而起拔地而起 What special meaning has the landscape to the author?Being his ancestral landancestral land,Rainy Mountain plays a key role in the authors exploration of his Kiowa identity.The land is th

32、e visible visible embodiment of the tribal historyembodiment of the tribal history.The old days are gone forever.The Kiowa warriors are dead.The culture has almost disappeared.What remains is the land which is the visible embodiment of their peoples past.By directly involving himself with the landsc

33、ape of his ancestors,the author is able to identify more identify more closely with them and relive their experiencesclosely with them and relive their experiences in his imaginationimagination more vividly.2.S2 For my peoplean old landmarkLandmark:any prominent feature of the landscape,e.g.a tree,a

34、 hill or a building,serving to identity a particular locality e.g.The statue of liberty is the landmark of the New York City3.S4 in summer the prairie is an anvils edge.1)anvils edge:anvil铁砧铁砧is a heavy block of iron or steel with a smooth top on which metals are shaped by hammering.An anvils edge i

35、s hot,tough,hard.Here anvil is used metaphorically.2)In summer the earth of the prairie is extremely hot and hard.4.S5 The grass turns brittle and brown1)brittle and brown:alliteration other examples of alliteration in this paragraph include:willow and witch haze,great green-and-yellow grasshoppers

36、2)草变得又脆又黄5.5.At a distance in July or August.almost to writhe in fire:从远处望去,七八月里的树叶热的冒烟,犹如在火中挣扎The author uses“steaming”,“fire”,“to writhe”figuratively to show how hot and dry the place is.6.popping up like corn to.popping up like corn to sting the flesh.:sting the flesh.:像玉米花爆裂时一样像玉米花爆裂时一样突然弹起突然弹起,

37、刺得人皮肤痛刺得人皮肤痛popping up like corn:When a grasshopper hops,it pops up,making a sudden movement like corn being roasted.Here the simile vividly shows the sudden movements of a large number of grasshoppers stirred by a traveler.8.Loneliness is an aspect of the Loneliness is an aspect of the land.land.1)

38、1)Loneliness is a major quality of this landscape.2)2)As we can see,the depiction of the land is injected with the authors own emotions and imagination,bringing out the spirit of the place.3)The author emphasizes loneliness perhaps because this quality enables one to concentrate ones mind on the ear

39、th.loneliness9.All things in the plain are isolate,there is no confusion of objects in the eye.1)平原上的一切都是疏离开的,所见之物不会混杂在一起让人看不清楚.2)“eye”in the singular form means mans power of seeing or observing.e.g.to have your eye on something:to have noticed something not to see eye to eye:to disagree with someo

40、ne to my eye:in my opinion t o h a v e a g o o d e y e f o r something:to be good at recognizing what is attractive and valuable No confusion of objects in the eye10.To look upon that landscape-is 10.To look upon that landscape-is to lose the sense of proportion to lose the sense of proportion 1)1)清

41、晨清晨,太阳在你背后冉冉升起太阳在你背后冉冉升起,此时观看此时观看这片大地这片大地,你会失去正常的比例感你会失去正常的比例感 2)2)to lose the sense of proportion means that some objects may seem larger or smaller than they really are.Probably,the bright morning sunlight makes objects seem to be out of proportion.11.Your imagination comes to life,and this,you th

42、ink,is where Creation was begun 1)The landscape makes your imagination vivid and lifelike,and you believe that the creation of the whole universe was begun right here.2)Creation:in English,“the Creation”usually refers to the act of God,i.e.the act of making the universe,including the world and every

43、thing in it.Here,the author omits“the”,perhaps to show that he is talking about the origin of the universe as he,a Kiowa,imagines.Summing up:the major features of Para.1-Mixture of description and imagination-Lyrical language:sound effect,specific choice of words,figure of speech to create vivid ima

44、ges-emotionally involving himself with the landscapethe function of Paragraph 2:In the second paragraph the author explains the purpose of his visit to Rainy Mountain:to be at his grandmothers grave.This paragraph serves as a transitional link between the description of the l a n d i n t h e f i r s

45、 t p a r a g r a p h a n d t h e n a r r a t i o n o f h i s grandmothers and his peoples stories in the following paragraphs.Ls I was told that in death her face was Ls I was told that in death her face was that of a child.that of a child.1)1)In death,she was peaceful and free from all earthly worr

46、ies and miseries.Her face looked like that of a child.Only in death can one return to childhood innocence and peacefulness.2)The word“child”is repeated in the first sentence of the next paragraph:“I like to think of her as a child.”Structurally the two paragraphs are smoothly connected.In meaning,th

47、e author seems to say that life life is but a circle-one begins as a child is but a circle-one begins as a child and ends like a child,and in death one and ends like a child,and in death one returns to where one beginsreturns to where one begins.(symbolic meaning of the Sun Dance)1.What is the main

48、idea of this paragraph?This paragraph sums up the history of This paragraph sums up the history of the the KiowasKiowas as a Plains Native as a Plains Native cultureculture the golden time and the the golden time and the declinedecline in their history in their history2.S2 When she was born.last gre

49、at moment of their history.My grandmother was born(around 1880)at a time when the Kiowas were still living in their golden time or to be more exact,the last moment of their golden time.Starting from this paragraph the author links his grandmother with the history of the Kiowas.This narrative structu

50、re will continue in the following parts of the essay.3.In alliance with the Comanches,they had ruled the whole of the southern Plains.The Comanches:(pl.Comanche;or Comanches)North American Indians,formerly ranging over the southern Great Plains from western Kansas to northern Texas and now located i