Summaries and Analyses of Literature - Ceremony

In Ceremony, Leslie Marmon Silko lays out the journey of the central character Tayo through the various aspects of his culture and traditions to realize the contrast between the white culture and the reservation Indians. Tayo, being the main character in the play, is drastically affected by the World War and has thus lost his touch with what reality constitutes and what his culture contains. His brother Rocky is a classic representation of the white culture, thoroughly dedicated to assimilate into their ways and be one of them. A wise old Grandma overlooks Tayo’s journey and introduces old man Ku’oosh and Betonie who guide Tayo on his path to revelation and knowledge. Emo and his entourage serve to represent those “lovers of war” who drive Tayo sick, reminding him of the tortures inflicted on the Japanese. Their presence also makes Tayo realize the distinction between whites and Indians and how a uniform is only a temporary transition to acceptance that will eventually be discarded and Indians ignored and hated. In order to cure his ailment, Tayo is brought to Betonie who is also, like Tayo, a child of a white and an Indian, showing Tayo the path to personal enlightenment. During his ceremony, Tayo encounters Blue Swan and T’seh who serve as milestones in Tayo’s progress towards completing the ceremony.

Theme: In Ceremony, Tayo recognizes the contrast between the white culture and the Indian culture and how increasing assimilation has led to a loss of connection to Indian religious practices and a loss of connection to nature that serves to give a person the key to self-revelation and self-knowledge.

The whole novel is rich with imagery. Starting at the beginning with the shooting of the Japanese reminding Tayo of his uncle Josiah all the way to the mountains and forests through which Tayo journeys serve to demonstrate the metamorphosis of Tayo from one who is hesitant to re-approach his Indian roots to one who embraces these ideals as a way to understand himself and the world better. The tone of the novel has a certain didactic edge to it, an informative yet acknowledging attitude that conveys a passive and recognizing tone to the reader. The lack of chapters in the novel gives way to the development of the message of continuity in life, people, and the world at large. In terms of symbols, the yellow pollen serves to represent a symbol of fertility and how the Tayo is recognizing the circle/cycle of life that is inherent in the Indian culture. Another significant symbol in the novel is the cattle, a hybrid breed who Tayo has to find. In essence, these cattle are like Tayo, hybrids between the Indians and the whites, who Tayo has to understand and gather back to set them in the right direction, serving as an important aspect of his self-knowledge.

A quote by Grandma that relates well to the thesis is when Grandma states “By planting time they’ll forget” in reference to Tayo’s situation (31). In this brief statement, Grandma makes subtle references to nature through “planting” and the inevitability of having Tayo undergo a ceremony in order to cure himself by understanding himself and the world better. In another quote, Tayo “…leaned close to the earth and sprinkled pinches of yellow pollen into four footprints.” Of the mountain lion, demonstrating how, yellow being symbolic of fertility, marks the continuity of the cycle of life, relating back to the theme of understanding Indian religious practices and recognizing and prizing them for what they are.