Identities, And Traditions In Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony

Allie Downes
Mrs. Kulat
English II Honors P 8
25 May 2023

The Stolen Land, Identities, And Traditions
In the novel Ceremony, Leslie Marmon Silko captures the violation and neglect of Native Americans from colonialism through the repeated objectification of Indians, resulting in Native Americans who are left stripped of their cultural identities. Initially, white people treat the main character Tayo with respect despite being Native American because of his role as a soldier in the war. Nevertheless, after coming home from fighting a war in the U.S army, Tayo realizes that although “[he] had been treated first class once, with [his uniform]” (153), “the Indians got fooled when they thought it would last” (153), implying that the white people

When Tayo was younger, he lived in a town named Gallup, where Native Americans are seen as a tourist attraction. People came to Gallup “to see Indians and Indian dances; they wanted a chance to buy Indian jewelry and Navajo rugs.” (107), making Native Americans feel like animals in a zoo that people came to watch instead of individuals who had the same rights as everyone else. As a result of being seen as an economic tool, Indians’ cultural values were an afterthought, causing “elements in [the Indian’s] world [to shift]; and it became necessary to create new ceremonies” (116) because the Native American culture did not fit the identity that the white people wanted them to have, causing Native Americans to be forced into adopting new identities, repeating the idea that the Native Americans are made into whatever the white people wanted their purpose to be. Furthermore, the white people exploited the land Native Americans cherished for capital gains. Logging companies took over Laguna, and “[the Indians] couldn't stop [the] white people from coming to destroy the animals and the land”(172) and “the balance of the world had been disturbed, and the people could expect droughts and harder days to come” (173) because the logging companies blatantly ignored the values of the Native Americans to benefit themselves. The logging companies disrespecting the sanctity of the land demonstrates the repeated idea that colonialism causes white people to feel more important than the people they conquered since they felt as though they could do what they wanted even though it hurt the Native Americans. Overall, Silko instills the idea that white people did not care about the well-being of Native Americans and took everything from