Show story telling Is real art with zuni indian is folklore of pueblo tribe unique in mythology new york story telling far from being a childs amusement is a highly developed and serious art among the zunis largest community of pueblo indians in southwestern united states according to dr ruth benedict whose collection of folk tales gathered from leading tribesmen has just been published by the columbia university press suicide is unknown among the zunis and violence is taboo says dr benedict who lived with the tribe for two summers to complete her investigations issued as zuni mythology in the folklore the over those who haye zuni folk tales give an extraordinary place to women the sexes of the protagonists are constantly reversed men or women may equally take the initiative in courtship when the man is the suitor the women impose tests upon their suitors and refuse marriage and when the woman is the suitor the men do likewise it is always the theme of the timid man that is developed not of the frightened virgin A zuni audience likes very long tales and the majority of stories combine in different ways several well marked incidents dr benedict adds these incidents are stock property and their outlines are known to all the audience the zuni narrator is almost always free to incorporate his special knowledge in a tale the most striking way in which the importance of personal bias and experience is shown in zuni tales is in the contrast between tales told by men and by women the version of the deserted husband told by a woman expatiates on the womans comans grievance her husband did not compliment her on her cooking the womans comans story details her revenge the mens version omits all this and tells the story from the point of view of the man it begins with the husbands proposal to bring calamity upon the pueblo because of his faithless wife diff differs ers from real life pointing out that life as described in the myths is often very different from real life dr benedict says that the stories should in some cases be regarded as daydreams which compensate for the restrictions of actual life marriage with many wives is a zuni fantasy of the same order as raising the dead or traveling with seven league boots in other bodies of folklore it plays a fairy tale role in zuni mythology for zu ni institutions are thoroughly monogamous nog amous contrasting with almost all other north american tribes the absence of any taboo against multiple spouses is an old and general er al north american indian trait ancient customs ang discarded are woven into many of the stories indicating the typical cultural lag of folklore dr benedict declares though doors have been common in zuni since 1888 1883 and are today nearly universal folktale characters enter the house by means of a ladder to the roof and down another ladder from the hatchway at present sheep herding occupies much of the life of zuni men and hunting is in abeyance in the tales however all heroes are hunters and there is bisno no mention of sheep herding except except in tales recognized as mexican in like manner men do not now come courting with a bundle of gifts for the girl but in folklore this is a convention usually observed courting with bundles may not be a survival of an older custom but a borrowed incident which is a convention stone knives and entrance through the hatchway also have become conventional vent ional attributes of a less troubled and ideal age and from this point of view should be considered along with the fabulous prowess of heroes as runners in the stick race individual who wants to die and to take revenge on others summons murderous apaches who kill him as they sweep down upon the unsuspecting indians the one situation where physical violence is institutionalized in zuni as in other pueblos is the conflict between the wife and the husbands mistress dr benedict explains the two women may meet in a fist fight in contemporary custom as in folklore the man does not take part only death satisfies grudges are cherished in zuni in actual life they give rise to malicious aspersions but blit in folklore they are usually satish satisfied led by nothing less than the death of the offender true to the peculiar ideology UL of zuni these reprisals are easily phrased as teaching people to love you that hat is to act decently toward you zuno folklore differs from most north american indian mythology in that the usual daydream is little concerned with prowess in in warfare their most popular theme is the triumph 0 of the despised and weak and previously worsted the poor orphan boy is victorious in hunting in stick races in gambling and in courtship those who do not have witch power are tri |