coyote pedagogy is a term sometimes used to describe king’s writing strategies (margery fee and jane flick). discuss your understanding of the role of coyote in the novel.
– assignment given by erika paterson
coyote is known as the transformer to the okangan and salish people. in the novel “green grass running water” by thomas king coyote is found showing his transformation attributes by playing many roles, by being in many places at once and by weaving between the stories being told – by being both in them and outside of them.
at the beginning of the novel coyote begins to take us on a surreal and deep adventure, into the the beginning of time and the being of this world as we know it. coyote summons another peoples cultural story, unconsciously, from his own dreams:
“who are you? says that dream. are you someone important?
“i’m coyote,” says coyote. “and i am very smart.”
i am very smart, too, says that dream. I must be coyote.
“no,” says coyote. “you can’t be coyote. but you can be a dog.” (1-2)
and so god is created, out of coyote’s dreams. and coyote has no control over the god that emerges. the god is not all powerful, and neither is coyote. there are many things happening that connect and intersect the different beings, and there is a flow, there is cause and effect, but with no certainity of what results will occur from the things that go on. the thread that coyote takes us on and “their multiple interconnections imply the syncretic and transformative abilities of oral stories” (55 blanca).
coyote blurs the lines. coyote is mischievous and coy, and although his moments of emergence in the novel seem few and far between, his brief and subtle appearances are actually quite influential. as margery fee and jane flick write about coyote’s role in the mishmash creation story blend that king recounts: “rules are made for coyotes to break! apart from ignoring borders between animal and human (or divine and human, if you prefer), [his] subversive move makes the central story of the christian religion into a coyote story, and repeats the novel’s overall strategy which subsumes european culture and history into an aboriginal framework, and counters a patriarchal religion with a matriarchal one. (136)
i believe that most importantly, coyote’s presence serves to keep our eyes open. to remind us to step back from the unfolding of stories, to make space for chaos and the unknown in our lives and in our understanding. in blanca’s article “theorizing the world of the novel”, king’s literature methodology is assessed by it’s uniqueness, which is not simply post-modern as many might assume by it’s chaotic structure, but rather it it is entirely different literary theory that comes from aboriginal storytelling:
“king uses an interactive and dialogic literary theory to dismantle the kind of theory that sees novels as closed systems. he writes northrop frye and structuralist literary poetics into green grass, running water, for example, in a way that suggests viewing western theory through the lens of native experience and traditions, rather than the other way around. ” (45)
coyote crosses into the world of abstract where he interacts with his own dreams and engages in a struggle with them. what occurs with coyote is whimsical, but also powerful. the things coyote engages with, as light-hearted as his sociabilities are, have major impacts on what is occurring. coyote connects us with the story being told. so that we are also engaged in the occurrences going on. coyote is constantly dialoguing with the narrator, influencing the story at it’s very telling. “coyote is here and now” (53)
works cited
Chester, Blanca. “Green Grass Running Water: Theorizing the World of the Novel.” Canadian Literature 161-162. (1999). Web. Accessed Nov 9 2016.
Flick, Jane. “Reading Notes for Thomas King’s Green Grass Running Water.” Canadian Literature 161-162. (1999). Web. Accessed Nov 9 2016.
King, Thomas. “Green Grass Running Water”. Toronto, ON: Harper Collins Publishers Limited, 1993. Print.
Accessed Nov 9 2016.
Sartore, Joel. “Coyote”. National Geographic. 2015. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/c/coyote/. Accessed Nov 9 2016.
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Hi Stephanie,
I liked what you had to say about Coyote’s presence in the book and it made me think of why else Coyote appears here and there throughout the story. I came up with the conclusion that this is also because it is to remind us that Coyote is always there, whether we see, feel or hear about him; the story of Coyote, the stories he tells and the stories he partakes in are forever surrounding the Aboriginal culture. Coyote is seen as the trickster, always causing trouble and this reminds me of a little kid that you just don’t want to deal with, but here is Coyote popping up again when you least expect in the story.
Hi Stephanie
Nice post! I think that King likes to use coyote pedagogy because it makes you pay attention. Much of King’s novel asks the reader to watch for things to change, that stories can change at any moment. I think that is what coyote represents, he is here and not here, always waiting to make another change. Coyote’s role is to demonstrate to the reader that stories are not liner, that they may create variations, and King uses this role to initiate the changes. I find this writing style very interesting, and different from what I am used to. Let me know what you think!
Hi stephanie,
Very astute analysis of coyote! I think your own perspective, as well as/in tandem with the opinions expressed by the previous two commentators, provide a really solid portrait of coyotes character and role in GGRW. Always cropping up, serving as a reminder and an anchor for the readers attention, injecting chaos into the narrative. As I read these descriptions of coyote I wonder if part of his appeal as a character is also related to the fact that, as you point out, he’s not omnipotent or omniscient, and in this sense he’s very relatable, a very “human” god, ironically.
Hi Stephanie,
My comment might be showing up on Anne’s blog, but this was the only way I could figure out connecting to you–hope you receive it.
I really enjoyed your blog about Coyote. I haven’t formed a lot of thoughts about Coyote in GGRW so your blog helps me think about him/her ha ha…
What I notice about Coyote is his lack of worry–he just takes everything in stride. In a sense he seems child like to me. Even the quote you inserted where he talks to the dream–it is child like…first he brags about how smart he is–something a young child might do. Then the interchange reminds me of kids playing and deciding on their roles, and one of them asserting who he (Coyote) will be without any sense of question, while kindly including the other as another role. What I like about Coyote is similar to what others have written…he is so down to earth…so real…so refreshingly innocent yet not acting as though he’s worried if he makes a mistake.
Great blog. Good luck as we get to the end of the course!