Oral Tradition. An oral tradition is a work, idea, or custom passed by word of mouth from generation to generation. Works found in the oral traditions of peoples around the world include folk tales, fables, fairy tales, tall tales, nursery rhymes, proverbs, legends, myths, parables, riddles, charms, spells, and ballads. “Song of the Thunders” and “Song of the Crows” come from the Anishinabe, or Ojibway, people. The Anishinabe are a group of American Indians who live primarily in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Canada. It was almost the year 1900 before Anishinabe music was recorded and studied. Until that time, the Anishinabe preserved their songs by memory and passed them orally to each generation. At the time when Frances Densmore recorded and studied these songs, the Anishinabe people were called Chippewa by the government.
Personification. Personification is a figure of speech in which an idea, animal, or thing is described as if it were human. As you read, think about what is being personified in each song.
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• “Song of the Thunders” and “Song of the Crows” are Anishinabe dream songs that were later used as war songs. Dream songs are composed during a dream or on waking from a dream. Most are about animals or nature. The dreamer’s manido’, or spirit, becomes the animal or natural occurrence.
• Cultural Connection. Dreams are important in many religions throughout the world. For Anishinabe people, dreams have a spiritual meaning and are often used for guidance. Not every dream provides a person with guidance, however, and a person may wait years before fully understanding the meaning of their dreams.
• In “Song of the Thunders,” the singer wonders about and watches the mystery of a storm taking place until he feels himself become a part of the storm and sings its song. In the “Song of the Crows,” the singer has the power to understand the language of the crows.
Look at the three diagrams below. Choose which you think would be the best setting in which to tell and hear a story, or arrange a setting of your own. List three reasons to support your decision on your own paper.
Describe your dreams that have seemed the most vivid and have remained the most memorable.
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