Transformation of Traditional Values

Transformation of Traditional Values
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Transformation of Traditional Values
Ella Clara Deloria is a famous ethnologist, novelist, and linguist whose work recently began to be acknowledged. She was born in the Deloria family, which was quite prominent in South Dakota. Her contribution is vast in regards to ethnography and texts in ‘Sioux grammar.’ Most of these accomplishments earned her the title and a reputation in the 1940s regarding the ‘Sioux culture’ The Sioux community had diverse tribes, most of which are associated with pastoralism. They relocated from one place to another following bison herds. Their activities also included hunting bison, which made them follow their migration patterns. Movement patterns are based in the plains that are now the states of Wisconsin, Minnesota, South and North Dakota. In her book ‘Waterlily,’ Ella describes the lifestyle of the Sioux (Deloria, 2009). The central theme follows a generational gap of two Sioux women, Waterlily and Bluebird who learned the importance of Kingship through experiences. The Sioux people preferred calling their camp circle “tiyospaye,” a term frequently used in the novel. Ella used this as a force to reckon with when she describes relationships, change, conflict, and bonding. Waterlily is expressed from a third person’s opinion. However, the book uniquely aims at detailing the experiences of women in Sioux.
According to Ella, women are described as wives and are responsible for maintaining the household. Her novel begins as she explains the movement of the “tiyospaye” in search of shelter and food. At the same time, Bluebird’s time to give birth was near. Childbearing activities are deemed a ‘woman's job’ as we can she moves out of the moving line to look for a place she can deliver. She glances from one flower to another in astonishment and in astonishment at the beauty of the clearing names her daughter' Waterlily'. The relationships of Sioux people were based on Kinships. After Bluebird gives birth, Ella takes us back to when she was a carefree 14-year-old girl. When she loses her mother in a raiding camp, they are forced to move into another camp circle. This new camp circle has no blood affiliation, but they take them in as family and form a social kinship. Ella uses the theme of social relationship to explain the importance of unity among Sioux communities. She further explains to us that Tetons used cultural values to teach their people the importance of caring and respecting each other. Later on, Waterlily and her family are reunited with their relatives and Bluebird sighs at the sense of belonging she felt. The book goes ahead to mention that when the group was not on the move, the women were responsible for the community. Their work involved caring for the well-being and happiness of children and elders. Waterlily grew in this loving atmosphere (Cotera, 2004).
Aboriginal women are a race that has fought their way up the ladder from discrimination. They are used to experiencing challenges associated with the fact that they are women and their lineage (Anderson, 2016). Scholars have described their lives as a 'double b...