The World On Turtle's Back Genesis Similarities

The World on Turtle’s Back is a creation myth written by the Iroquois, a Native American Tribe. As I read this myth, I realized the many parallels to the Book of Genesis from the Bible. Upon further analysis, it is evident that The World on Turtle’s Back has a multifarious amount of similarities to the Book of Genesis. There are multiple parallels and similarities between the two myths, while there are some noticeable differences between the two that don’t necessarily match up.

In the grand scheme of things, the first and most explicit parallel would have to be that Genesis and The World on Turtle’s Back are both myths, furthermore creation myths. Therefore they are already similar due to the idea that they are discussing how the Earth was created, and are capable of giving reasoning and insight as to why some things are the way they are currently.

The two myths are very similar since they

both share the idea of a “forbidden tree” and disobedience. In The World on Turtle’s Back, the man and the women are not allowed to eat from the tree, but end up going over to the tree and attempting to. The woman falls out of the sky world when she doesn’t follow the rules. In The Bible, Adam and Eve are in the Garden of Eden and are not allowed to eat the fruit from the tree. Eve gets fruit from the tree and her and Adam partake in it. They are banished from the garden and lose their innocence. The idea of disobedience also leads to the idea of the fall of man presented in both myths.
Both myths are creation myths simply because they explain the creation of the Earth and the animals. In Genesis, God created Adam from the dirt, and Eve from Adam’s rib. They named the animals of the Kingdom that God created. In The World on Turtle’s Back, the twins created animals like deer, mountain lions, squirrels, weasels, and porcupines. Both explain the idea of creating the animals of the Earth.
The World on Turtle’s Back and Genesis are similar in the idea that they both show the natures of good and evil and how they clash and balance each other.

In Genesis, Adam and Eve have two children, Cain and Abel. Cain is jealous of Abel and this evokes Cain to kill his brother. In The World on Turtle’s Back, the mother has two children, one left-handed and one right-handed. The left-handed twin is evil while the right-handed twin is good and light. They both clash for days on end until the left-handed twin is defeated by fate. Both myths are perfect examples of good and evil, and the notion that good and evil are always going to be a part of the world. The myths simply establish good and evil.

Although the myths share many similar ideas, the myths are created differently with contrasting ideas and parts. For example, one difference between the two myths is in Genesis, God created the Earth, while in The World on Turtle’s Back, a woman created the Earth. Regarding creators, there is only one God and creator in Genesis, while there are multiple in The World on Turtle’s

Back.
Regarding good and evil, both myths display good and evil as different roles on the planet. In The World on Turtle’s Back, good and evil are displayed as opposite forces that create an equilibrium, and buffer each other out creating a balance in the world. Meanwhile in Genesis, good and evil are opposite forces that constantly struggle and clash, not creating any balance. The myths have different views on good and evil.
In Genesis, the first human is created from the dirt of the Earth. In The World on Turtle’s Back, the people are made from clay.
All in all, it is evident that The World on Turtle’s Back has a multifarious amount of similarities to the Book of Genesis. There are multiple parallels and similarities between the two myths, while there are some noticeable differences between the two creation myths that contain different concepts and ideas.