The Genre of Blck Elk Speaks

Understanding the genre of a work is crucial for interpreting it. If Black Elk speaks is an apocalyptic prophecy, then we need not worry if the accounts of battles are consistent. If it is a history of a nation, then we needn't bother to interpret the dream sequence.

Much like the Bible, Black Elk Speaks is composed of many different genres, and assigning one label is a doomed endeavor. Some sections are history, some prophecy, some biography. Readers must remain aware of this, and interpret different sections according to different standards.

We the People

I had just found out that the US had been allies with apartheid South Africa, and I was feeling worse than usual about being an American. This Cuban who was there pointed out that this had happened before I was born, and I was in no way responsible. So why was I feeling guilty?

This same question came up in class today, as people talked about all the horrible things "we" had done to Indians. Why do we feel guilt for sins from 8 generations ago?

Guilt is a social phenomena, based on fear of judgement from our peers. There is ample evidence to show this--psychologists know that masked people feel freer to commit crimes, and that if in a scientist in a lab coat asks subjects to deliver a fatal electric shock, they will gladly kill. Historians know that moral standards have risen significantly over time (in medieval Europe torturing cats was a popular form of entertainment.), showing that moral standards (and thus our sense of guilt) derive from society.

So, "we" feel guilty about what "our" ancestors since we know that other nations and ethnic groups also remember, and base their current opinion of us off this.

Advice on Speaking from Flatland

The Persuasive Speaking Unit from Iowa State University makes many specific recommendations, but the overall theme is to use multiple lines of evidence. Consider this example structure:


Monroe’s Motivated Sequence
Best pattern to use for a personal action appeal.
Five Parts: Attention, Need, Satisfaction, Visualization, Action; but only three main points.
ATTENTION
In the Introduction
A scenario of a heart attack
NEED:
I. We have a problem with heart disease and heart failure in America.
A. Every year thousands of Americans die from heart attacks.
B. Only a small part of the population knows how to save someone who is suffering from a heart attack.
SATISFACTION:
II. If more people were trained in CPR more lives could be saved.
A. You can get trained in CPR by attending a Red Cross class.
B. You can get trained in CPR here on campus.
VISUALIZATION:
III. Once you are trained in CPR, you can save a life.
A. Let's look again at the opening scenario.
B. Statistics show that communities that have a large percentage of the population CPR certified have lower rates of death from heart attacks.
ACTION:
In the conclusion
Call to the audience to get trained in CPR

The speaker uses a story with emotional appeal, statistic, and facts about the audience to make his/her point. This same multi-pronged approach appears repeatedly throughout the unit.

Transcendental Jamestown

The Jamestown colonists were driven by wild dreams and endless optimism to the New World, where they did little work, and thus had little food and shelter come winter, and most of them died. The Transcendentalists were driven by wild dreams and endless optimist to the frontier, where they did little work, and thus had little food come winter, and most left.

Bertrand Russel started a school where students were not required to follow rules. It's not hard to guess how that turned out. Society can certainly be improved, history has shown that those who propose to remake human nature are consistently disappointed.

The Golden Mean

Emmerson believes that nature has many uses, the least of which is resource. This a step in the right direction compared to many environmentalists, because it implies that although we cannot completely wreck the environment, we can still use it. Likewise, although nature exists to serve humanity, if we destroy it will not be useful. This is a very balanced and plausible perspective that promotes moderation in the use of natural resources.

Growth and Progress

The growth of the rail industry in the 1800s follows the same pattern as the growth of the computer industry. An initial invention can do something really efficiently. Vast landscapes of profit dance before the eyes of entrepreneurs, and everybody rushes for the same opportunity. The big fish eat the little fish, and the panoply of small companies consolidates into a few giants. Things then run efficiently and smoothly, and people take their new technology for granted.