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This study of the Native American in the western, romance, detective, horror, and science fiction genres examines how even historically accurate representations distort and bias the Native American figure to fit European-based traditions and modern agendas. The authors provide critical approaches for evaluating the literature. They argue that while popular fiction conventions determine and limit authentic portraits of Native American cultures, successful popular fiction writers approach literary quality by fusing authentic Native American culture with the standard genre conventions. Approximately 200 books are discussed and evaluated, and true Native American stories and writings are contrasted with mainstream versions of Indian culture.
While the exploitation of Native Americans has long been recognized, little has been written about the manipulation of Native American figures in recent popular fiction. This study will appeal to students of Native American culture, literature, and popular culture. An appendix of special terms is provided along with a comprehensive bibliography.
List of contents
Introduction
Writing Indians: Native Americans of the Imagination
Native American Perceptions of Reality: Accessing a Different World-View
Native-American Literature--The Enduring Creation Story
The Western
The Romance Genre: Welcome to Club Cherokee
The Native American in the Detective/Crime Genre: Bridging Ratiocination and Intuition
Amalgams of Horror: Shaping Native American Magic into European Molds
Indian Utopias/Dystopias: Science-Fiction and Fantasy Projections Past and Future
Conclusion
Appendix: Native American Terminology
Bibliography
About the author
ANDREW MACDONALD is Associate Professor of English at Loyola University in New Orleans. He has published widely in the areas of popular culture, mystery fiction, and science fiction. He is co-author with his wife Gina Macdonald, of Mastering Writing Essentials (1995), a text for bilingual writing students. His interest in Howard Fast began during visits to the former Soviet Union and Russia, where Fast's works are widely read.
GINA MACDONALD is Visiting Assistant Professor of English at Loyola University in New Orleans. She is the author of James Clavell: A Critical Companion (Greenwood, 1996), and has published well over a hundred articles in periodicals and books on popular fiction, detective fiction, and popular culture. She is also coauthor of a text for bilingual students of writing and a freshman composition text.
