Text Structure In The Osage Firebird

There are many aspects of text structure that are incorporated in “The Osage Firebird”. These elements are what give the passage cohesiveness.

The first section explores Tallchief’s early life using sequence and detail from her childhood. It expounds that her grandmother told stories about her Osage heritage talking about fire spirits and talking animals. Those are the details that give you an idea of what her childhood was like. Then, the transition in the passage leads you to the turning point in her life. The text states she was “shy, docile, and introverted”, and took ballet lessons at four that “brought her out of her shell”. This demonstrates the sequence structure used in this section. Another piece of evidence is Betty Marie wanting to become a ballerina with her new found passion. The passage lastly uses the transition phrase “From that moment” to emphasize the transformation in Tallchief and hints the end of the sequence in the first section.

“Talent Isn’t Enough” utilizes the cause and effect text structure to express Tallchief’s development in ballet. The first paragraph within this section says her natural talent (cause) led to easy acquiring from the instructor (effect). Betty Marie’s instructor thought she didn’t properly learn the basics, (cause) so her

The first paragraph goes into her personal struggles. The text explicitly states, “Betty Marie was teased because she was a Native American.” This expresses the contrast from her dance world to the prejudice outside world. This section mentions Tallchief was singled out when people made fun of her last name. This gives you part of what she specifically had to face. The text implies she possesses “thick skin” when she would still say her last name with pleasure. This strongly emphasizes Tallchief’s character by the way she coped with racism at