Published Paper Details:

This paper delineates the cultural, political, and historical facets woven into Native American writing, also termed indigenous American literature. The genesis of a Native American renaissance during the 1960s reflected a pivotal transformation in American society that demanded recognition of Native culture and history, which had been persistently erased from the national consciousness. Before this movement, Native American contributions were largely ignored. When Native writers took up the pen, there was a resurgence of the rich oral traditions and culture, ravaged by centuries of oppression and cultural assault. Their stories countered the pervasive stereotypes that dominated mainstream American fiction and movies, which shaped public perception. These narratives challenged the Euro-centric assumptions that had permeated the land since the European conquest of the land. Native American writings offer resistance, strive for cultural recognition, identity formation, and a sense of belonging for the surviving members of diverse tribes. It grapples with the legacy of colonialism and the ongoing struggles for political rights, the social injustices experienced on reservations, and the ever-present questions of identity. For American society to authentically embody the democratic tenets upon which it purports to stand, its discourse must integrate the perspectives and exigencies of its primordial inhabitants. Through active engagements with Indigenous American literary expressions ample opportunities are opened up to American society to actualize its avowed democratic principles on both political and cultural fronts.