The Bungling Host

Contents

List of Illustrations                                                                                                     

Introduction                                                                                                               

1. Caribou Takes In His Wife’s Dress (Subarctic)                                                                

2. Snake Makes a Meal in the Embers (Southwest)                                                              

3. The Fire Trap (Grand Basin)                                                                                             

4. While Bird Sings, Bear Cooks (Northwest Coast)                                                            

5. Seal Roasts His Hands (Northwest Coast)                                                                        

6. Silver Fox Digs Up Yellow Jacket Larvae with His Penis (California)                            

7. Wildcat Beats a Blanket (California)                                                                                 

8. Deer Kills Her Children and Puts Their Bones Into the Water (Southwest)                     

9. Wolf Transforms Two Arrowheads into Mincemeat Puddings (Southwest)                    

10. Badger Pushes a Stick Down His Throat and Gets Yucca-Juice (Southwest)                

11. Bison Skewers His Nose (Plains)                                                                                    

12. White-Tailed Deer Shoots at a Red Clay Bank (Plains)                                                  

13. Man Kills Bison with His Sharpened Leg (Plains, Plateau)                                            

14. Black-Mountain-Bear Gets Persimmons by Leaning Against a Tree (Southeast)          

15. Rabbit Gathers Canes (Southeast)                                                                                   

16. Squirrel Slits Open His Scrotum (Plains)                                                                        

17. Duck Excretes Rice (Northeast)                                                                                      

18. Bird Gets Salmon Eggs by Striking His Ankle (Northwest Coast)                                 

19. Muskrat Cooks Some Ice (Northeast)                                                                             

20. Woodpecker Pulls Eels Out of Trees (Subarctic)                                                            

Conclusion                                                                                                                             

Appendix: Bungling Host Myths                                                                               

Notes                                                                                                                          

Bibliography