Water Jar Boy: Myth

Water Jar Boy: Myth

"Water Jar Boy" is an example of a myth that teaches us about the Tewa culture. This story is a myth because the main character is magic; you know this because he's born as a jar. It is also a myth because the main character goes on a quest for his father. A quest is a common theme in mythic stories. By reading the story you can see that they hint at an afterlife. When the mother dies she goes into the waterfall which is sometimes used to represent transformation. The Tewa's story "Water Jar Boy" is an example of a myth.

In "Water Jar Boy" we are given various examples of what the Tewa culture was like, such as the importance of water, quick to believe what they were told (lying was uncommon) and they valued fine clothing. You can see that water was important to the Tewa people because of the emphasis on him being a water jar. If water wasn't important he would not have been a water jar. You can also see that lying wasn't common because the grandfather is so quick to believe that the newly made human was in fact water jar boy. They also made a point to talk about his nice, fancy clothes, so they must have been valued in the Tewa culture. We can learn a lot the Tewa culture by reading their literature.