![]() High Horse and Red Deer fell upon a Crow encampment that night. Red Deer, still wanting to help his friend and cousin, decided to follow. To help his cousin, Red Deer advised High Horse on two separate occasions to sneak into the girl’s teepee and make off with her, both attempts ended as comical failures.įinally, in a fit of disgust and embarrassment, High Horse proclaimed that he was going on the warpath since he could not have the girl. The disclosure by the girl only acted to frustrate High Horse more, and he eventually had to turn to his cousin Red Deer for help. Eventually, High Horse did made contact with the girl and learned of her similar feelings for him, but also learned that she wished to be earned from her father like a lady and not to be stolen away dishonorably. High Horse neither possessed the respect nor the wealth to obtain this girl from her parents, so he had to resort to stealth and trickery to gain any access to her at all. High Horse’s Courting begins when a youth named High Horse falls madly in love with a girl of his tribe. Typically, Black Elk’s narratives try to bestow a lesson (or lessons) that the listener can learn from, just as the subject of the story sometimes does. The story of High Horse’s Courting stands out as a perfect example of one of Black Elk’s narratives. Most important in these lessons on the nature of man was wisdom, and in all of Black Elk’s recollections somewhere a deeper wisdom can be found. Through these stories, greater insight can be gained into the ways of the Sioux, as well as lessons into the nature of all men. ![]() These stories ran the whole gambit of life experiences from the most innocent acts of a boy in love, to the hard lessons learned from the treachery of the whites. The wisdom possessed by Black Elk is immediately present in his recollections of various lessons learned by himself and by others. It is from the strength of this vision, and the wisdom in his heart that Black Elk eventually realized his place as a leader and wise man in the Ogalala band of the Sioux. (from WIKIPEDIA).Black Elk’s childhood vision stayed with him throughout his life, and it offered him aid and wisdom whenever he sought it. He has questioned whether Neihardt's account is accurate and fully represents the views or words of Black Elk. The Indiana University professor Raymond DeMallie, who has studied the Lakota by cultural and linguistic resources, published "The Sixth Grandfather" in 1985 including the original transcripts of the conversations with Black Elk, plus his own introduction, analysis and notes. They have questioned the accuracy of the account, which has elements of a collaborative autobiography, spiritual text, and other genres. While the book is lauded by non-Native audiences, and has been inspirational to many New Age groups, some Lakota people and Native American scholars do not consider the book to be representative of Lakota beliefs. Neihardt also states that Black Elk shared some of the Oglala rituals which he had performed as a healer, and that two men developed a close friendship. Neihardt writes that Black Elk told him of his visions, including one in which he saw himself as a "sixth grandfather" - the spiritual representative of the earth and of mankind. Neihardt recounts that Black Elk invited him back for interviews. ![]() His intention was to talk to someone who had participated in the Ghost Dance. Black Elk spoke in Lakota and Black Elk's son, Ben Black Elk, who was present during the talks, translated his father's words into English. Once there, Neihardt interviews the holy man and takes down his story, which included at age 13, being part of the Battle of the Little Big Horn, and later surviving the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre. Neihardt, an American poet and Nebraska poet-laureate, received the necessary permission from the Bureau of Indian Affairs to go to the Pine Ridge Reservation.to meet an Oglala Lakota medicine man named Black Elk. ![]() Light tide lines to upper and lower margins of pages throughout. Previous owner's signature in ink to front free endpaper. Significant sunning and moisture stains to boards. Burgundy cloth-covered boards with gilt teepee to front and gilt title to spine. Illustrated with color decorations to title page and fifteen color and black and white plates by Standing Bear. ![]()
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