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CASD 1717 – Fall 2024

American Frontier Myths

Some of you may be familiar with Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie books. These mostly biographical stories tell of the author’s childhood and her family’s journey from Wisconsin to various parts of the West during a period of covered wagons and homesteading. These books have had an enormous cultural impact.

For a sense of some of the ways that these books have their own culture, you may wish to take a look at this site which also includes links to some of the historical and recreated sites from the book.

Covered wagon in front of a log cabin with an American flag raised. A large sign in the front reads "Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum Visitors Information" Walnut Grove, MN
Entrance to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. @Wikimedia Commons

Like Anne of Green Gables, these books featured a strong heroine. They were also made into a long-running successful television series.

“Little House on the Prairie” Remastered Edition Trailer, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SFkrgW2i8U.

Read

Fellman, Anita Clair. “Introduction” from Little House, Long Shadow : Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Impact on American Culture, University of Missouri Press, 2008.

Get Article at Brooklyn College Library

Nostalgic Uproar

In 2018, the American Library Association renamed one of its most prestigious awards for children’s literature. For years it had been the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award. Here is the New York Times article about it which details some of the ALA’s reasoning as well as the outcry about it.

There are similarities with the recent uproar about a handful of Dr. Seuss books no longer being published caused uproar, discussions, and opinions. Many of these reactions are clearly underpinned by intense nostalgia for these books.

Were you familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books? What are your thoughts about the arguments that are being made throughout this introductory material by Anita Fellmann?

Back to Anne of Green Gables
Go on to Related Books

Comments

17 responses to “The American Myth”

  1. Sofia Buttaro Avatar
    Sofia Buttaro

    The Little House on the Prairie books were unfamiliar to me. Fellmann addresses criticisms of the works’ treatment of Indigenous peoples and racialized depictions while also examining their ideological foundations, emphasizing how they correspond with tough individualism, self-reliance, and manifest destiny. These points ask readers to think about how the show ignores the intricacies and iniquities of that time while reflecting and reinforcing prevailing narratives about progress and settlement. Our comprehension of the series’ continuing appeal and its controversial position in American literature and history is enhanced by Fellmann’s analysis.

    Reply
  2. Mahnoor Avatar
    Mahnoor

    I was not familiar with the Little House in the Prarrie books. I think that Anita Fellmann’s arguments in the introduction are completely valid. She points out how the book does not consider indigenous life but rather talks about things through a very Americanized view. Emphasis is placed on individualism and self-reliance, which elevates the settlers point of view, making them look heroic. She points out the issues that have come by doing things and how it has over the years downplayed the trauma and horrid situation natives have been through. Overall, I think it’s a very important and compelling conversation that needs to be had.

    Reply
  3. Amy Khait Avatar
    Amy Khait

    I was briefly familiar with the Little House in the Prairie books. I think the arguments made are valid. Fellmann addresses how the book doesn’t portray indigenous life properly. Instead it discusses things through a Westernized or American point of view. It makes the settlers look brave or heroic. There has been many issues with doing this. This downplays the trauma that natives have been through. I think this is a very important topic and healthy conversations should be had about this. If this is not addressed and talked about, then it will not motivate change. These conversations should educate people on how certain views can be problematic.

    Reply
  4. Victoria Lucenti Avatar
    Victoria Lucenti

    I was indeed familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books, my grandmother grew up during the rise of popularity from these books, as well as the tv show series. I think Anita Fellman makes strong arguments, especially in a way where I did not realize this as a child while being read these books. There are certainly elements that are controversial and problematic, and specifically because of how these books and tv series is set from a Westernized perspective, and due to this, truly does not present indigenous life in a accurate or proper way that is both considerate nor mindful.

    Reply
    1. Ariana Loyfman Avatar
      Ariana Loyfman

      I was not familiar with the Little House on the Prairie other than hearing about it broadly but I thought that the perspectives in this story are very interesting and eye-opening. I also think that peoples views on moments of history depend on the time period as well as their backgrounds in many different aspects.

      Reply
  5. Anthea H Longvlle Avatar
    Anthea H Longvlle

    I was not familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books but I was familiar with the movie and TV series. I guess she made some valuable points concerning the argument the books balance between fact and fiction questioning their use as historical text.

    Reply
  6. Kateryna Senkovych Avatar
    Kateryna Senkovych

    I was not familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books or TV series. But I like the whole concept of the story. I think that Anita Fellman makes some good arguments about the history of the books and how there are a lot of topics that are included that are controversial and problematic for some people.

    Reply
  7. Michelle Cortes Rodriguez Avatar
    Michelle Cortes Rodriguez

    I was not familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books. But after watching and reading I think there’s pretty good arguments being mentioned.

    Reply
  8. Tory Sen Avatar
    Tory Sen

    I was not familiar with the Little House in the Prairie books. Critics attribute the skewed depiction of Native American life in Anita Fellman’s Little House on the Prairie series to a Westernized or American perspective. The book downplays the pain that native people went through and makes newcomers look brave or heroic. We need to positively discuss this important issue to bring about change. Books and TV shows often feature controversial themes rooted in a Westernized perspective, which were not readily apparent to me as a child. It is important to let people know about the harmful points of view and explain why certain points of view might be dangerous.

    Reply
  9. Anifat Abumislimova Avatar
    Anifat Abumislimova

    I was not familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books. Her argument is that the book speaks more about things from an American perspective rather than about the lives of indigenous people. As stated in the article, “Wilder and Lane themselves, believing that the values of the books were those that had come to distinguish the great American experiment, also were fearful that these values were fading from the scene as an un-American reliance on the state was coming to predominate. So in some ways, they considered their books to be counterhegemonic, and thought that by reading them, Americans would regain a purchase on those attitudes and behaviors that had served the nation well for so long.” So they believe that independence and self-reliance made Amercans special and successful.

    Reply
  10. Selina Chen Avatar
    Selina Chen

    No I was not familiar with Little House on the Prairie books but the story was interesting. There were points discussed in the story regarding natives and I thought that it was interesting.

    Reply
  11. Alexa Mendez Avatar
    Alexa Mendez

    I am unfamiliar with the little house on the prairie books however I think the points and narratives being described were very reasonable and understanding, it was interesting ideas and how history aspects comes into place.

    Reply
  12. Emma Avatar
    Emma

    I am not familiar with the little house on the prairie books but I do see the points that are being addressed and understand how it captures the story from a very Americanized point of through kind of pushing away what these people really did go through.

    Reply
  13. Naurah Romulus Avatar
    Naurah Romulus

    I was familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books and TV shows, but I was never interested in them. Anita Fellman points out that the stories make settlers look heroic while ignoring the struggles and injustices faced by Indigenous people. Fellman says the books reflect a Westernized perspective and support values like limited government and individualism. Reading that really opened my eyes because I did not know the story was so conservative, especially when it comes to how they portrayed Natives.

    Reply
  14. Kaylee Pontone Avatar
    Kaylee Pontone

    I know Little House on the Prairie just from the show from my parents but was not familiar with the books. The portrayal of the Natives is definitely one you would see at the time and not what would be considered acceptable to put on a show today.

    Reply
  15. Amna Syeda Avatar
    Amna Syeda

    I’m not familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books, but Anita Fellman argues that they romanticize pioneer life and westward expansion. She suggests the series shaped ideas about the “American Dream” while reinforcing racial biases and settler colonialism, raising important concerns about representation in history.

    Reply
  16. Jaylyn Calles Avatar
    Jaylyn Calles

    Were you familiar with the Little House on the Prairie books? What are your thoughts about the arguments that are being made throughout this introductory material by Anita Fellmann?

    I hear of the stories before but i never took the time to read any of them. I believe the narrative is very different throughout this introductory material isnt something thatll be seen often in todays day.

    Reply

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