Native America and Native American Literature

As background to the literature of British and Spanish Colonization and Conquest, we must never forget that the land which became “America” was already discovered, already settled, and the United States continues to colonize tribal nations.  To give you some idea of the land and people prior to contact, watch part 1 of “500 Nations” (Youtube Link Below).  Unlike most Western literature, Native literature was mostly oral, so pay particular traditions to the creation stories shared and to the people telling stories to explain Native culture and society.  The section on the Ancestors tells the story of the people who became the Acoma and offers another perspective on the story of the Spanish Conquest of New Mexico.  The section on the Mound Builders tells the story of the society which would develop into the people contacted by the early Spanish and British settlers of North Carolina and Virginia.   Also notice the contrasts between Native cultural outlook and that of the settlers.  Most Natives came from a world view which believed they were in the best of all worlds already.  Most settlers were seeking a new and better world and attempting to create it in what became America.