CliffsNotes on

Black Elk Speaks

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About the Author

About the Novel

Introduction
Brief Synopsis
List of Characters
Historical Timeline

Summaries and Commentaries

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Author’s Postscript

Character Analyses

Black Elk
Black Elk’s Father
White Cow Sees
Standing Bear
Red Cloud
Crazy Horse
Sitting Bull
Whirlwind Chaser

Critical Essays

The Quest Journey of the Hero
Cultural Displacement
Relationship with Nature
Neihardt’s Authorship

Study Help

Quiz
Essay Questions
Practice Projects

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Summaries and Commentaries

Chapter 1 - The Offering of the Pipe

(Here and in the following sections, difficult words and phrases are explained.)

two-legged/four-legged    a poetic way of describing bipeds (humans) and quadrupeds (animals).

Great Spirit    in Sioux belief, the divine power that created the world, whose presence can be perceived in daily life; comparable to the Judeo-Christian idea of God.

Hetchetu aloh    it is so indeed.

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