Bruchac, Joseph oral history interview, 1995 October 19

Description

In his interview, Bruchac describes how authors and scholars often misinterpret or alter the original meaning of many Indian folklore and tales. He believes some authors set out with preconceived notions of how Native American life was hundreds of years ago and how life is today. Bruchac encourages those who study Native American people, history, culture or traditions to try and understand these elements of Native American life before embarking on missions to relate these to the public. The author goes on to give many examples of the negative effects these skewed stories have had on people's perceptions of Native American life. Bruchac, along with his sons, is trying to educate the public on the real practices and stories of Native American life. He does this through his numerous books and by traveling the United States of America as a professional storyteller.