For my group presentation, we presented on the Navajo Ceremony Night Chant. We discussed how this chant is a way that the Navajo community has a relationship with nature, and that it can be tied to romanticism because they always turn to nature in times of desperation and healing. We also mentioned how many components of the ceremony are temporary, such as the sand paintings on the floor, the ceremony itself which only lasts 9 days, and fact that no photography is allowed at these ceremonies. The photography represents a danger to the nature of this ceremony since taking a picture would freeze the Navajo in some sense, disrupting the flow of the ceremony and their relationship with nature.
The English and German Folktales on the other hand tell stories of young woman who must lie and plot their way to the top. The female protagonist is usually portrayed as the typical “damsel in distress” and waits for her luck to change by meeting a young man, usually someone of higher status. The difference in social class is evident through the dialect the characters use, showing some are more educated than others.
Both of these texts also seem to have a different version of beauty. In the Navajo texts, beauty represents the ideal healthy state of a human being, while the folktales perceive beauty as something physical, representing youth and attractiveness. The folktales also incorporate magic of some sorts, through wishing or doing favors for someone in return for something. An example of this is when the 3 “ugly” women spin yarn for the girl so she can marry the prince. The deceitfulness and trickery is not something the Navajo community would agree with, and they would definitely not perceive that as a source of beauty or nature. It would seem rather unnatural to them.
Excellent post, Domenica. You highlight the issue of the ‘ideal beauty’ very well, although it comes a bit late in your post. I only point this out for you to be aware that such an observation, were it to come earlier, would be helpful in forming an argument and defining a direction for your paper — this might be helpful for your paper. The question of the ideal here, which differs in that one is based on form (the beauty of the women) while the other is unintelligible, or at least only temporarily intelligible and resists form in that it is accepted as inherently impermanent, would be a really interesting topic to write upon. Keep this in mind as we move forward. A lot of theories of community revolve around this general notion. Excellent work! 5/5