Coyote and the Buffalo

Throughout most Native American tribes and cultures they shared many of the same perspectives and beliefs. Most of the stories of the Native Americans used these beliefs to teach lessons or entertain. In Coyote and the Buffalo many of the Native American beliefs and perspectives are illustrated in the story such as, balance/harmony, reverence for earth and creation, strong sense of community, and the purpose of literature is not just to entertain the listener but to teach. Coyote and the Buffalo is a type of story called a trickster story. In this story the trickster is played by the coyote, which is a common chose of animal for the Native Americans. This represents the dual nature of humans. Natural phenomena are sometimes attributed to the actions of the trickster. In this story the Native Americans attempt to explain their belief that Animal People used to live on earth, had magical powers, and could alter their shapes as to change into different animal species when people appeared on earth. They use this story to teach many lessons. One of those lessons would be that trickery gets you nowhere because the coyote kept trying to trick Buffalo Bull, but each time it backfired on him. Another is not to have too much greed because if the coyote had not been so greedy then none of those bad things would have happened to him. The Okanogan tribe, the Native American tribe that wrote this story, admires qualities like keeping promises, honesty, and cleverness; but disapproves of greed and dishonesty. When Buffalo Bull gave coyote the cow that kept supplying food in return for his new horns, it showed that there was a strong sense of community and collaboration. So throughout the story of Coyote and the Buffalo the Native American beliefs and perspectives are used. This story teaches lessons and entertains. It talks about reverence of creation and earth. The strong sense of community is represented by the Buffalo Bull trying to make peace with the coyote, and later