Tlingit's Raven And Marriage

In “Raven and Marriage,” Tlingit portrays some negative examples of human natural, which promotes the value of thanksgiving and portrays the worldview of judgement. According to “Raven and Marriage,” Raven has a good wife, Fog-over-salmon, who would always make him plenty of salmons. Raven later forgot his promise with the chief: to treat his daughter well, and he “forgot that he owed his good fortune to his wife” (p.72). He argued with his wife everyday. After one quarrel, he hit his wife with one dried salmon, and he lost his wife.
Another example of being ungrateful is displayed by the behaviour of the old man and the high-cast girl, the fox woman. The old man was failed to pretend that he was handsome and rich. There was an old lady made

his dream come true while this high-cast girl’s family was visiting. When the old man became wealthy, “he was too hard upon the people of his town,” and “his wife was prouder than when she was with her father and if boys or anyone else displeased her they were put to death” (p.75). Both the old man and the girl became arrogant and cruel when their life became better. They “forgot that [they] owed [their] good fortune to his wife” (p.72), just like Raven did.
Attaching to the world view and cultural values, people are taught to be owed and thanksgiving. People should always be thankful of what they have because happiness is not inevitable. However, it is human natural to forget that the good fortune is not a sure thing. When people get used to something or someone that treats them good, it can become their habit and makes them stop cherishing. They start to believe it is a guarantee thing. On the other hand, our behaviour consistent with this world view. The social norm teaches us to express thanks when people help us or give us a gift. We are considered as rude if we fail to do so. It is our cultural value to appreciate each other and to be gratitude.
The story demonstrates another worldview of snob that people judge others by their outward appearance, whether rich or not. Failing to marry another high-caste girl, Raven turned the old man into a handsome man who looked high-caste with well dressed, and he intended to make this old man married this girl. The girl immediately fell in love with the old man because of his good look, and they got married without telling the girl’s father. The father was glad because he liked the look of the old man too. However, the old man became old and ugly, as the way he was originally like, during he and his wife’s trip to his home. His wife cried for his bad look. Both of the father and this high-caste girl selected a man by his look. Additionally, the people insulted the old man for his fault of marring a high-caste woman. They refused to help this old poor man to serve his relatives they when the chief, his wife’s father came visit them. However, after the old man became handsome and rich, “those who had made fun of him were very much ashamed of themselves” and “[t]he people that formerly made fun of him were like slaves to him” (p.75). It’s human nature to pay attention on one’s out look and material things that one owns. These people’s behaviours consistent to the snobbish worldview. They basically value people by their outlooks and money. There’s an old saying: “Don’t judge a book by its cover” suggests that people can be more valuable inside than outside. On the other hand, treated one better when one was rich than when one was poor is judging people in another aspect simultaneously.

In “A Narrative of the Captivity and Restauration,” Rowlandson emphasis on the set of values, beliefs and practices in Puritans’ culture.

She observed the Indian attack, and she described her suffering as God’s will. As she said, “when God calls a Person to any thing, and through never so many difficulties, yet he is fully able to carry them through and make them see, and say they have been gainers thereby” (514). Rowlandson believed that everything comes from God, and she sees everything happens as God’s plan. During her first week of captivity, she listened to the people who captured her and behaved well. She had only cold water and no food for 9 days. She was very scared about her situation but she was survival by relying on God. In her twenty’s removal, she got a lot of encouragement and strength from God and the bible. She can always find scriptures from the bible to give her power and comfort. In the Fourth Remove, she got the precious Scripture from God: “Jer.31.16. Thus saith the Lordm refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears, for thy work shall be rewarded, and they shall come again from the land of the Enemy” when she was so tired and hungry (p.493). It was God giving her support during her 20 removal; it was God made her survival. In Puritans’ worldview, people are blessed if they believe in God. They do what God pleases them to, and their happiness comes from God. Puritans value God than anything else. They believe that they are blessed because

God always has the plan for them. Rowlandson’s experience proves this belief is true, especially when she finally learned something at the end and have her family all together.
In Rowlandson’s experience, she learned how to survive among the privation.

One of the great examples is that she was trained to Deal with hunger. Rowlandson described that the food provided by the Indians was disgusting and loathsome. In the Fifth Remove, she was sick and got a stomach because of the food. However, she started to desire and appreciate the food in the third week because she was too hungry and had nothing else to eat. Later, she even took food from the children because they couldn’t really eat it. She put hot food into her mouth, which burnt her mouth. She couldn’t stop doing it just because she was too hungry. Moreover, she learned how to handle the limitation of life. When Philip Maid asked her to give her a piece of apron, she refused at first. The Indians threatened to kill her and she ended up giving the whole apron to Philip Maid. Life is beyond our control. People can’t always follow their own will and wish. We can’t always do whatever we want because there could be some limitations in life. At the end of her story, Rowlandson felt the horrible experience was good for her because of in vain. She finally saw and felt that everything doesn’t come easily. She learned to look beyond the small troubles and to value more on things she owned and people she had. Compared herself with David, she said, “it is good for me that I have been afflicted” (514). Her experience was a great plan by God, and hardship is a sign of God’s love. She deserved it happened to

her. She felt blessed because God never left her alone.
The two stories are similar because they portray the same core value, belief and practice of being thanksgiving.