Research Paper Outline

Potential outline for paper: I'm interested in the traditions of storytelling and folklore in the American Indian culture. I'm not positive it will be an appropriate topic for my research paper, but I am hoping that I can do some research and form a thesis from what I find. Until then, this is the basis for the research I will be starting.

Claim:

An exploration of American Indian storytelling/folklore

Support:

-Is there a similar formula for the stories?

-Purpose of storytelling, who did the telling? Who passed down the stories?

            -How storytelling connects to other traditions/rituals

-Differences in stories and story telling among different tribes (NE, NW, SE, SW)

            -Creation

            -Animals native to the different regions?

-Compare/contrast to American stories (children’s stories?)

-Explore motifs

-Purpose of stories (ex. Teaching morals or otherwise?)

-Any aspects adopted from American Indian tradition by the colonists?

-Were any stories created around the colonists? (positive or negative)

            -If so, how was the “white man” portrayed?

Warrant:

-Did stories/traditions survive the colonization period?

-If so, any particularly famous ones? (In the Cherokee area specifically)

-Importance of keeping tradition alive?