Resources for Maude Kegg Information

The following were the resources used in compiling this information on Maude Kegg. These resources offer more extensive information on the writer:

Native American Authors Project
Voices from the Gaps: Maude Kegg
National Endowment for the Arts
ERIC Digests
Maude Kegg's Beadwork

Application of Kegg's Works in MN Schools

Maude Kegg certainly plays an important role in the study of Minnesotan Native Americans as she has been presented with a National heritage Fellowship Award, (1990) and August 24th (1986) was declared Maude Kegg Day. Both honors were awarded due to her impact to preserve Ojibwe language, traditions, stories, culture, and crafts.

Studying Maude Kegg in Secondary Schools will allow students to understand the history and culture of the Ojibwe. By remembering this dwindling culture, we can remember why it is important to hang on to it, and many others; it will help to deter stereotypes. Kegg put her life into preserving Ojibwe culture and one way to further preserve it, is to study her work. By studying her books, one can gain a sense for an oral culture, learn a history and current life of the Ojibwe, as well as gain an appreciation for local diversity of language and culture.

Maude Kegg's Literary Impact

"My namesake, my uncle, used to make snuff. He made it from scratch. I really like the look of that little birch bark snuffbox.... I must have got the snuffbox, then I peeked at my aunt parching rice, took a pinch, put the snuff in my mouth, and went playing around outside, spitting all around. .

All of a sudden I felt like I was spinning around, I felt like I was spinning, and I vomited, so I couldn't even walk. .

Then my aunt saw me crawling around, really sick and in bad shape, and she called them. I was just scared and she yelled to the Indians out paddling around.....

'Hurry up! There's no doctor. Hurry up! They'll have to drive to the point to get the Indian doctor. Hurry, harness up and get the old man!'.

'What's the matter with her?' I must have been asleep, I don't know..

And when I woke up, I was sitting up. I felt okay. An old man was sitting there and the ladies were laughing and laughing..

'Naawakamigookwe,' they told me. 'Don't ever take snuff again,' they told me."

- Portage Lake

http://voices.cla.umn.edu

Maude Kegg has only a few published works, but each has made an impact on Ojibwe oral culture of teaching and learning. Portage Lake is, perhaps, the most extensive of her collection. This books recounts the memories of an Ojibwe elder through the eyes of a little girl. The stories talk about Ojibwe life and the struggle to persevere in the 20th century. The book describes the self-sustaining lifestyle of the Ojibwe through the seasons: maple sugaring, berry picking, snowshoe making, hide-tanning, among others. Following the seasons, the story explores Kegg's experiences as a young girl from misbehavior to unwanted social situations.

Being published in both English and Ojibwe, gives students the opportunity to explore and appreciate another language. This style of publication would breathe new insight into Minnesota's secondary schools as students will be able to see the language, life, and history of the Ojibwe.

Studying the stories of Maude Kegg, Gerald Vizenor, and other Native American authors helps readers to see Native American culture as their own. Reading one of the many books about Native Americans, but not written by Native Americans, singles out the Native Americans from the rest of society because they are seen as an "other" group of people. By reading books written by Native Americans, and about Native Americans, a reader can see them as a part of the collective society. Studying Native American literatures helps to lessen the gap between the "others" and ourselves.

General Information on Maude Kegg

Maude Kegg, recipient of the National heritage Fellowship Award, (1990) and Maude Kegg Day on August 24th (1986), is known for her effort in preserving Ojibwe language, traditions, stories, culture, and crafts. She has done so by keeping the tradition of oral culture and Ojibwe art alive.

A member of the Mille Lacks Band of Ojibwe, Maude Kegg was born in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, in 1904. Because her exact date of birth was unknown, she chose her own birthdate as August 26th.

In order to best preserve Ojibwe tradition, Kegg kept the practice of oral culture alive. She told stories of her childhood and Ojibwe teachings to John D. Nichols, who then transcribed and translated her work. These transcriptions were then published in both Ojibwe and English. These books show the Ojibwe life, Kegg's experiences, Ojibwe stories and historical events.

Maude Kegg died on January 6, 1996, at the age of 94.

Resources for Gerald Vizenor Information

The following are some helpful resources that were used in compiling information on Gerald Vizenor on this blog. Check out these sources for additional information on Vizenor as an author and as an Native American. Also found in these links are interactive tools to help enhance the classroom with actual readings by Vizenor himself!

Minnesota Author Biographies Project
White Earth Site
White Earth Map
Wikipedia - Gerald Vizenor
Audio clips of Vizenor reading personal works


*With access to JSTOR one can access the Nebraska based journal "American Inidan Quarterly" (AIQ). Gerald Vizenor has been published in AIQ on numerous occasions.*

Vizenor's Literary Impact

Vizenor’s impact on literature as a whole is undeniable. He has written over 25 books and continues to produce more work on a yearly basis. Most of the work that Vizenor focuses on is fiction and poetry although some of his scholarly work has been published in Native American journals such as American Indian Quarterly.

A good example of Vizenor’s work and writing style can be found in arguably his most popular work Bearheart: The Heirship Chronicles. A synopsis of the novel can be found at Amazon.com. It reads:

“…The backdrop is an America that has exhausted its oil supply and descended into chaos. Driven from their Minnesota home when the cedar trees Proude guarded are commandeered for fuel, Proude Cedarfair and his wife, Rosina, set out for New Mexico. On the way they gain assorted companions, including Benito Saint Plumero, who killed a man for love of a female park statue; Pio Wissakodewinini, who was punished for rape by being surgically changed into a woman; and Pure Gumption, a dog with healing powers. They meet dangers, such as the evil gambler, who wagers gasoline against any gamester's life; food fascists who carve up "witches" for restaurant fare; and a horde of people who, in the chemically poisoned environment, have been born crippled. Bestiality and necrophilia also appear in Vizenor's mythical tale, which may have been daring when first published, but now is puerile.” –Amazon.com

As you can tell from this synopsis of Bearheart: The Heirship Chronicles the ideas and themes expressed in it are common to other Native American works: the emphasis on nature, on American ideals that will inevitably cause problems for American (dependency on oil), stereotypical Indian vices such as gambling and alcohol etc. What is unique about Vizenor’s writing is that he not only writes about things that are somewhat common in other Native American literature but does so in a very postmodern way of writing. Not only does this stray from traditional Native American writing to attract a younger, newer audience of Native American readers and writers, but it spikes the interest of non-Native American readers and writers alike.

Application of Vizenor's works in MN schools

Like mentioned before, Vizenor’s writing uses many postmodern elements. These elements include character development, plot changes, and overarching themes. Because Vizenor’s novels and poetry use postmodern elements they are easily intergrated into most secondary literature classes. Furthermore, since Vizenor is native to Minnesota and since his writings often times take place in Minnesota, he may fulfill specific secondary standards that other authors may not.

General Information on Gerald Vizenor

Widely thought of as one of the most influential Native American writers of all time, Gerald Vizenor challenges both native and non-native Americans to consider the roles of an American Indian. Born in Minneapolis, Vizenor has been challenged with constructing his personal the identity of an American Indian. This challenge is largely a result of loosing his Anishinaabe (Chippewa), father at the age of 3 to a murder (Minnesota Author Biographies Project). After the death of his father, Vizenor lived on the White Earth Resrvation with family which is located in North Western Minnesota (White Earth Map). It is here where he started learning customs and beliefs of the Chippewa tribe.