The Song of Hiawatha

Consider the relationship between Blood Kin Versus Found Family in the epic. In which ways does Hiawatha support his blood relatives? In which ways does he prioritize the people that he is not biologically related to? How does Longfellow’s representation and interpretation of family speak to the larger motif of Indigenous communities in Western literature?

Teaching Suggestion: This Discussion/Analysis Prompt invites students to apply the theme of Blood Kin Versus Found Family to the context of the epic. To encourage student engagement and understanding, you might ask students to consider which archetypes of a hero Longfellow’s Hiawatha possesses, as he is responsible for leading a community, instructing his people, and protecting them from harm. In this vein, he cares for and supports all of those in his vicinity to create a new community; however, he also is quick to react and avenge the deaths of those he is closest too, including his mother, his wife Minnehaha, and his two best friends Chibiabos and Kwasind. Overall, the unity amongst tribes to create a community is at the forefront of Hiawatha’s goals, as he hopes to preserve the peace through his actions. He remains the peacekeeper until the arrival of the “white man,” where he then decides to depart the land, leaving his community’s fate in the hands of the colonizing Christians.