COYOTE

Coyote as a literary symbol has specific forms and functions within oral narratives, but his range is wide and far reaching as is the terrain covered by his biological counterpart. He will exemplify certain literary functions in one story and show up as a different symbolic and often, contradictory referent in another story. The archetype of a trickster is complicated where as, the archetype of a hero or heroine is unified and predictable.

In North American Indian literature, Coyote holds a unique position as one of the First Peoples, in this role he helped prepare the world for the coming of humans. He is often referred to as a creator of "the world-as-it-is". In this role, he serves as a guide to the landscape, which he helped to prepare for humans, as well as a comic figure who is constantly tampering with the original creation of the world. As one of the First Peoples, Coyote embodies qualities of animals and humans, thus the term 'transformer' as well as trickster is used to define his actions. He is cunning and adaptable, inquisitive and mobile, he enjoys thievery for the trickery. He sings, seduces, eats and drinks too much, true to the trickster motif; he makes and embodies a world appropriate for human imperfections. It has been suggested by some tribes that Coyote invented death to make humans take life seriously. Coyote functions in oral literatures as a symbol for the chaotic; human rituals are positioned as systems of order in the face of this chaos. In North American Indian narratives he will often appear in the following roles:

• Trickster/Clown/Buffoon
• Transformer
• Deceiver
• Monster-Slayer
• Scavenger
• Thief (of natural resources for and from humans)
• Teacher
• Guide (across the landscape)