"Sweet Sangria" and Native American Mythology
Yeah, you think about that, what you believe in (Amos), Amos sings in Sweet Sangria. This song finds Scarlet in Austin, Texas, taking in the beliefs on a Latino revolutionary who is fighting American intervention in Central America (Amos).
After the World Trade Center Towers went down on September 11, 2001, many
people in America started to question their beliefs. It matters now, to you and me (Amos), she sings. Scarlet is beginning to realize how crucial it is for each and every person to learn what their own individual beliefs are. It is so important for everyone to not take on the beliefs of those in power. Though relevant, the beliefs and practices of those in power are not necessarily the best way to view things. Scarlet is beginning to listen to herself, the stories of the people she meets, and the lands she travels to. She says, I'm takin in / What you believe in (Amos). Through these people, places, and events, she is finding out her own truth, something many people started to look for after the shock of the attacks on the Twin Towers subsided.
So much of what is shown in the mainstream media is misconstrued. With most television and radio programs, the audience only gets to hear about the things the program wants them to hear about. Furthermore, the audience only gets one point of view. Needless to say, no one should live their life by what they see and hear in the media.
On a similar level, there are quite a lot of things not taught in schools across the country. There are views and opinions not shown to students, both young and old, in many institutions. For example, most Native American literature is completely disregarded in many schools today.
A writer who conveys this message of neglect toward Native American literature is Paula Gunn Allen, especially in her essay Something Sacred Going on out There: Myth and Vision in American Indian Literature. It is a piece that speaks directly to a specific misunderstanding of Native American culture. In her essay, she discusses myths and legends in not only Native American literature, but also in their everyday life. She talks especially about closed-minded individuals of American society who view these stories as lies. She says, Popularly among Americans, myth is synonymous with lie; moreover, it implies ignorance or a malicious intent to defraud (Madison 547).
When they are young, many Americans are read fantasy stories and are encouraged to be imaginative. However, when they get older, the imagination gets cut off, and all the legends and myths they were taught are forgotten. Lacking this imaginative world that believes in so many possibilities, they grow up to view stories of a mythic nature to be preposterous, and completely untrue. By misunderstanding this important part of their culture, society misunderstands Native Americans as a people
So what exactly are Native American myths? Allen says:
In the culture and literature of Indian America, the meaning of myth may be discovered, not as speculation about primitive long-dead ancestral societies but in terms of what is real, actual, and viable in living cultures in America (Madison 549).
Sweet Sangria ends with a desperate plea: I ask you, give me a Bloodless Road (Amos). Scarlet is asking to be able to walk a road on which the blood of innocent people has not been shed. It is an image of maybe not a perfect world, but one in which a minority feels safe and understood. She asks herself a question that many people should ask when thinking about war and bloodshed, Why does someone have to lose? (Amos).
Amos once again switches between keyboard and piano throughout the song. The accompaniment provides a harder edge to this song that goes along with the theme of Scarlet looking hard for what she believes in. It sometimes evokes a feeling of confusion when Scarlet does not know exactly who to believe and trust. However, at certain times, such as the climactic ending, she knows exactly what path to take and is determined to get as close as she possibly can to that bloodless road.
After the World Trade Center Towers went down on September 11, 2001, many
people in America started to question their beliefs. It matters now, to you and me (Amos), she sings. Scarlet is beginning to realize how crucial it is for each and every person to learn what their own individual beliefs are. It is so important for everyone to not take on the beliefs of those in power. Though relevant, the beliefs and practices of those in power are not necessarily the best way to view things. Scarlet is beginning to listen to herself, the stories of the people she meets, and the lands she travels to. She says, I'm takin in / What you believe in (Amos). Through these people, places, and events, she is finding out her own truth, something many people started to look for after the shock of the attacks on the Twin Towers subsided.
So much of what is shown in the mainstream media is misconstrued. With most television and radio programs, the audience only gets to hear about the things the program wants them to hear about. Furthermore, the audience only gets one point of view. Needless to say, no one should live their life by what they see and hear in the media.
On a similar level, there are quite a lot of things not taught in schools across the country. There are views and opinions not shown to students, both young and old, in many institutions. For example, most Native American literature is completely disregarded in many schools today.
A writer who conveys this message of neglect toward Native American literature is Paula Gunn Allen, especially in her essay Something Sacred Going on out There: Myth and Vision in American Indian Literature. It is a piece that speaks directly to a specific misunderstanding of Native American culture. In her essay, she discusses myths and legends in not only Native American literature, but also in their everyday life. She talks especially about closed-minded individuals of American society who view these stories as lies. She says, Popularly among Americans, myth is synonymous with lie; moreover, it implies ignorance or a malicious intent to defraud (Madison 547).
When they are young, many Americans are read fantasy stories and are encouraged to be imaginative. However, when they get older, the imagination gets cut off, and all the legends and myths they were taught are forgotten. Lacking this imaginative world that believes in so many possibilities, they grow up to view stories of a mythic nature to be preposterous, and completely untrue. By misunderstanding this important part of their culture, society misunderstands Native Americans as a people
So what exactly are Native American myths? Allen says:
In the culture and literature of Indian America, the meaning of myth may be discovered, not as speculation about primitive long-dead ancestral societies but in terms of what is real, actual, and viable in living cultures in America (Madison 549).
Sweet Sangria ends with a desperate plea: I ask you, give me a Bloodless Road (Amos). Scarlet is asking to be able to walk a road on which the blood of innocent people has not been shed. It is an image of maybe not a perfect world, but one in which a minority feels safe and understood. She asks herself a question that many people should ask when thinking about war and bloodshed, Why does someone have to lose? (Amos).
Amos once again switches between keyboard and piano throughout the song. The accompaniment provides a harder edge to this song that goes along with the theme of Scarlet looking hard for what she believes in. It sometimes evokes a feeling of confusion when Scarlet does not know exactly who to believe and trust. However, at certain times, such as the climactic ending, she knows exactly what path to take and is determined to get as close as she possibly can to that bloodless road.
