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.