The major theme that shows up in the story is that of biculturalism and the fact that Tayo feels as though he is caught between two societies’. While he has grown up on the reservation surrounded by Native American culture. He does not feel as though he truly belongs because of his white ancestry. This is compounded due to the violent and negative history between the white man and the Native American, whose way of life and land was destroyed by the white mans greed and sense of entitlement. In biculturalism a person is stuck between the dominant culture and the one of their birth. (Patterson pg. 5). In Ceremony this is seen by Tayo coming to terms with his Laguna heritage before being able to confront the fact that he is shunned from white society. (Patterson pg. 5). This paper will analyze Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko in terms of socio-cultural context.
In Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko Tayo is a war veteran who is coming to terms with his survival and the situation he finds himself in when he returns home. He has PSTD and has resorted to drinking heavily in order to cope with the physical and emotional reminders of the time he spent fighting in Japan. On top of the fact he is struggling to deal with his memories of his experience fighting the Japanese. He must also deal with the prejudices he faces from the people living on the Laguna Pueblo reservation in New Mexico because he is half white as well as facing racism from the whites, who see him as being Native American and beneath them.
This is because “America, the land of the free and the home of the brave, blatantly discriminates and devalues its true native citizens “(Vianes pg.2). However, when the United States needed Native Americans to join their war effort against the Japanese, they allowed themselves to treat the Native Americans as equals for the duration of their time at war. The United States government expected the Native Americans to be willing to join their war efforts despite the history that the white man had destroying and subjugating the Native American people (Vianes pgs. 2-5). Tayo himself is torn between the world of his ancestors and that of the white man. He able to finally gain peace with the completion of the ceremony put before his by Betonie.
One can see a constant battle going on with Tayo concerning what he feels are the expectations of the white culture. During the time he spent in Japan fighting he realizes does not really know why he is killing them except that he was told by a white recruiter that he could fly a plane and that America would be proud. This shows that Tayo had been indoctrinated into the mindset that white people are superior and that if the white man says that something is a necessary action it is. Even if one does not really know or understand the reason for the action. Tayo realizes that the only reason that the United States is fighting the Japanese is because they like the Native Americans refuse to abide by the expectations and control of the United States. Tayo realizes that the only reason that he is fighting the Japanese was because the white man made it seem more glamourous then it really was.
This is a different view then his cousin Rocky. He and Rocky had been on different paths as Rocky’s path led him to want to leave the ways of his ancestors, while Tayo wanted to be able to retain some of his heritage while still being able to adhere to the ways of the white man. Tayo did not understand Ricky’s desire to leave the old ways as he thought that Rocky was dismissing their heritage. Rocky thought that Tayo and the people who stuck to the old ways were uneducated and deniers of the truth. This was seen when Josiah brought home a book about raising cattle and he and others members of the family thought that white man’s definition of cattle was laughable. Rocky on the other hand said “Those books are written by scientists. They know everything there is to know about beef cattle. That’s the trouble with the way people around here have always done things-they never knew what they were doing.” (Silko, pgs. 69-70). Rocky believes that because the white man basis things on science that they have to be right about everything. Tayo felt that Rocky was wrong and that faith and belief were the right way to come into knowledge. Due to their separate ideologies they were separated before the start of the war. This changed when they were together during the war and was a part of the reason that Tayo snapped after Rocky’s death.
According to David Rice, in Witchery, Indigenous Resistance, and Urban Space Silko sees the urbanization of the Laguna Pueblo people as the start of the destruction of their tribe and way of life. Even so she still believes that the Laguna people must be willing to change their point of view in order to deal with the imminent change that will arrive because of industrialization (Rice pg. 116). In the story Tayo at first seeks to live a more traditional life on the Laguna reservation and turns away from the knowledge of the city. He later realizes that this knowledge is in needed to understand what is happening in the world and how it effects the Laguna people (Rice pg. 116).
Tayo’s struggle between his traditional point of view and that of the white man/ the city can be seen in how he and his friend’s reaction to the memories of war. They along with Tayo have a disconnect with the world in which they reside, due to their experiences. They each seek a sense of solace and belonging in the act of drinking. This is because their actions in the war went against much of what they were taught by the tribe (Rice pg. 117)
This sense of alienation worsens for Tayo when he is taken to Gallup. This is because he is truly alone, without any means of emotional support in a town that he had had a horrible poverty filled childhood in. This is necessary for Tayo’s survival as he must align himself with the ways of the reservation while also remembering what he has experienced in the city.
In conclusion, Ceremony speaks of how the Native Americans lived in fear that the white man would destroy their entire tribe or way of life. The fight with the white man was not something that the Native American person wanted but it was necessary in order for them to protect their land and cultural identity. Nevertheless, there is conflict between the younger and older generations. The newer generations believe like Rocky that the white man’s way of doing things through science is the best way. This is partly because they have been pressured to adhere to white culture and ideas in order to hopefully get equal standing in society. While people such as Tayo seek to adhere to the traditions of their culture. They only way for a bicultural person to be able to live in a world where one part of their cultural identity has more power than the other is by assimilating to the stronger part, while holding on to the traditions of the other.
References
Patterson, Allene. “Biculturalism: A Search for Self Through Life Experiences and the Interaction of the People That Help Influence It. Camden, New Jersey: Rutgers University, 2011. Pdf.
Rice, David A. "Witchery, Indigenous Resistance, and Urban Space in Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony." Studies in American Indian Literatures 17.4 (2005): 114-43. Jstor. Web. 12 May 2016.
Vianes, Jessica. "American Paradoxes in Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony." Georgetown University, n.d. Web. 11 May 2016.
