Night Flying Woman Analysis

In the mid-nineteenth century, a girl named Ni-bo-wi-se-gwe (Oona) was born in pitch darkness in the middle of the day when the sun and moon crossed paths. The book Night Flying Woman by Ignatia Broker is the biography of Broker’s great-great-grandmother, Oona. It describes Oona’s life through what Broker has learned from her grandparents when they passed down the stories. In the book, one of the main themes is passing traditions on. I chose this theme because, in the book, passing traditions on is a major part of the characters’ culture. Passing traditions on is a practice that is important to many cultures and it effectively connects generations of people through experiences and stories.
A quote from the book that demonstrates the theme, shows a character 's viewpoint of passing traditions on. “‘These are the beliefs of our Ojibway people. We sustain the beliefs, and the beliefs sustain us. That is a circle. From seed to harvest, the life of the Ojibway is full and it is sufficient. This is what you must tell my grandchildren’” (Broker 57). This shows how important the traditions were to Oona’s tribe. They found it crucial to continue their beliefs and traditions. They believed they were effective and kept them content. Some examples of these traditions were the Naming Ceremony, tribal dances, and their Dreaming Journey. Along with all this, the quote talks about telling their grandchildren the ways of their people. This is because it was one of their culture’s customs.