Making Connections

1. Traditionally, when a contemporary author revisits an older work, a person spoken about becomes the speaker: thus, we say that the person gains “voice.” For instance, a story about a woman that was originally told from a man’s point of view might be retold in the woman’s voice. Erdrich does not do this. Why do you think it would or would not have been more effective if she had written her poem in the voice of a Native American?

   Question

   ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=

   Making Connections: - Traditionally, when a contemporary author revisits an older work, a person spoken about becomes the speaker: thus, we say that the person gains “voice.” For instance, a story about a woman that was originally told from a man’s point of view might be retold in the woman’s voice. Erdrich does not do this. Why do you think it would or would not have been more effective if she had written her poem in the voice of a Native American?
2. In what ways does the ending of Erdrich’s poem challenge or even reverse the ending of Rowlandson’s captivity narrative?

   Question

   ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=

   Making Connections: - In what ways does the ending of Erdrich’s poem challenge or even reverse the ending of Rowlandson’s captivity narrative?
3. Compare and contrast Mary Rowlandson’s version of her captivity with that of the speaker in “Captivity.” Pay attention to the specifics of event, setting, and language that Erdrich uses from the original text (e.g., Rowlandson’s Fourteenth Remove and Erdrich’s stanza 3, beginning “I told myself that I would starve”). What is the significance of the similarities and differences?

   Question

   ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=

   Making Connections: - Compare and contrast Mary Rowlandson’s version of her captivity with that of the speaker in “Captivity.” Pay attention to the specifics of event, setting, and language that Erdrich uses from the original text (e.g., Rowlandson’s Fourteenth Remove and Erdrich’s stanza 3, beginning “I told myself that I would starve”). What is the significance of the similarities and differences?
4. Read the short story “Captivity,” from First Indian on the Moon, by Sherman Alexie. In one section, Alexie writes, “It’s too late, Mary Rowlandson, for us to sit together and dig up the past you buried under a log, salvage whatever else you had left behind.” What does he mean? How would Erdrich respond to that assertion? Explain your response within the context of her poem “Captivity.”

   Question

   ALMF/kS1zzW73MouRsoXk1h0lKY=

   Making Connections: - Read the short story “Captivity,” from First Indian on the Moon, by Sherman Alexie. In one section, Alexie writes, “It’s too late, Mary Rowlandson, for us to sit together and dig up the past you buried under a log, salvage whatever else you had left behind.” What does he mean? How would Erdrich respond to that assertion? Explain your response within the context of her poem “Captivity.”