Reading Notes: Native American Hero Tales, Part B

The Jealous Father

This story presents a complex plot, all of which occurs because of what the title describes - a jealous father. A man has two wives, one of which bears a son. One day, the father becomes jealous of his son. Because of this jealousy, he tries to abandon his son on an island. However, the mom and dad end up conjuring different things in order to either save or harm the son, in accordance with their wishes. The mom sends a walrus to save the son from the island and bring him back home, whereas the dad sends a thunderstorm to kill this walrus and prevent him from rescuing the boy. The storm succeeds in killing the walrus, but not before the boy has made it back to shore. Once he arrives at the shore, he still has to complete a difficult journey to make it back home.

The Jealous Father (continued)

On his journey back home, the first obstacle encountered by the boy is that of two old hags. They possess blades on their arms, but instead of stabbing him, they end up stabbing and killing each other.  In another challenge, the son must pass a path that is covered by bones. When the bones are rattled, a group of dogs nearby comes to kill the trespasser. However, the son digs a tunnel under the bones and eventually escapes the dogs. After arriving at home, he causes a fire that results in the death of his father, and then he and his mother escape to safety.

There are elements of this story that I would like to incorporate in a story of my own. However, I think there are some central components that I will reframe in a different light. For example, in this story, the father attempts to get rid of his son by leaving him on an island. Instead, I would create a scenario in which the son is actually separated from his father. Then, the idea of a dangerous journey home could still be incorporated, but it would have an entirely different ending. As opposed to a vengeful son returning to his father, it would be a depiction of a son trying his hardest to return to a loving father. I could create different twists on the challenges that the son faces throughout his journey. And obviously, the conclusion would look different as a result of the different motivation for the journey.

Bibliography:
"Tales of the North American Indians: The Jealous Father" by Stith Thompson: online link
"Tales of the North American Indians: The Jealous Father (continued)" by Stith Thompson: online link

Image Information: The walrus that was sent to save the son.
Image Link: online link