Book of the Fourth World (Magill’s Literary Annual 1991-2005)
At a glance:
- Author: Gordon Brotherston
- First Published: 1993
- Type of Work: Literary history
- Genres: Criticism, Nonfiction
- Subjects: Language or languages, North America or North Americans, Literature, Central America or Central Americans, South America or South Americans, Learning or scholarship
The problem of patterning order out of chaos is solved by many cultures by the introduction of heroes who translate or decode images from the source, which are then recorded as creation stories. In many creation stories, the creative cultural hero has a younger or a twin brother, the trickster/destroyer. The Creator/Destroyer twin motif brings order to the chaotic clash between benevolent and malevolent forces.
Book of the Fourth World: Reading the Native Americas Through Their Literature is about making order out of chaos. Gordon Brotherston is our trickster/author; his...
[The entire page is 1698 words long]
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