The Earth On The Turtle's Back Analysis

Reynaldo Moreno

Herrera

English III

15 September 2016

Native American Legends are Great Spirit that are the basis of Indian theory. Many differ from how the earth was created to how humans were made. Each story shows how the worlds, traditions, and beliefs came to earth. The Earths on Turtles Back, When Grizzly Walked up right, and The Navajo Origin Legend, all show the attitudes and traditions native americans created.

In the story of The Earth On The Turtles Back, the story went that a god like women from Skyland leaned over a Great tree and slipped into earths ocean with. As the animals needed a place for her to stand, a Muskrat dove to the bottom of the ocean and got a handful of earth and they placed it on the Great Turtle's back. Thus life began on Earth. When The Grizzlies Walk Upright, legend went that the Sky Spirit made a snow mound called Mount Shasta. The Sky Spirit looses his daughter, and the daughter ends up falling in love with a grizzly bear. They had kids in which they were known to be the first Indians. The Navajo Origin Legend story goes that yellow and white corn made the first man and women. Each of these stories show the creation of the world, or traditions in

each of their own way.
The symbols in the stories show how the number 4 was very significant.

In The Earth On The Turtles Back, the Great Tree with the 4 roots show the stages of life and growth. Such as birth, youth, adulthood, and death. The legend of When The Grizzlies Walk Upright, was based off the 4 seasons. Also the Sky Spirit Carved a whole in the sky during winter time to push all the icy cold snow away in to a mound, also when it was hunting season for the grizzly. He came upon the god like girl. In the Navajo Origin Legend, the number 4 represented the 4 elements and directions. The main element was wind. As the corn and buckskin got guided by wind, as it once was a method used by their ancestors. The directions The Navajo Origin Legend used was East and West for the guidance of the

wind.
All three stories share a common archetype. The common archetype was that each story had a creator. The creator In The Earth On The Turtles Back was the Chief of the Skyland's Wife. She is the one who discovered earth with her dream and made it while the animals needed a place for her to stand. She also represented like a Mother to Earth or a Mother Nature Figure. When Grizzlies Walked Upright the Creator was the Ancient Chief. The creator broke off pieces of a stick to make life and land on earth. To which he made grizzly bears the strongest animals and gave them human qualities were one married his daughter and created what are now known as Indians. In The Navajo Legend the Creator made humans, food, and the elements. Corn and wind was used in the story. The gods brought down Corn , Buckskin, and wind to guide the items in the direction. All passages had a creator but for different things.
Behind each story there are different journeys and myths that are both divine and creative. They all have an equal balance of animals, colors, elements, and land etc. This made it an easy way for important messages and lessons to pass through generations while keeping each tale alive. Each tribe may have its own beliefs and sacred myths, but many have much in common.