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Weaving a Transnational Narrative: Yellow Woman and Orature in Almanac of the Dead

Abstract

This article identifies parallels between Leslie Marmon Silko's Storyteller and Almanac of the Dead, focusing on the recurrence of Yellow Woman, a figure of Keresan orature. Yellow Woman embodies female sensuality and its potential to incite social or structural change within communities, and I argue that in Almanac, Silko employs textual reinterpretations of Yellow Woman to demonstrate the importance of cross-cultural, indigenous-led movements toward decolonization. Finally, I compare Almanac to the current Idle No More movement, noting their similarities as vast transnational, transindigenous, and even transracial campaigns that model beneficial Native and non-Native ally relationships within the struggle against colonial oppression.

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