Duke Scholars Edit Writings of 'Forgotten' Native American Author Zitkala-Sa

Note to editors: Review copies of 'American Indian Stories, Legends and Other Writings' are available from Penguin. Call (212) 366-2754 or e-mail cindy.hamel@us.penguingroup.com.

DURHAM, N.C. -- In the first years of the 20th century, stories by the American Indian writer Zitkala-Sa appeared in the most prestigious magazines of the day. She continued to be well-known -- even notorious -- as she shifted her focus from autobiographical stories to full-time activism for the Indian cause.

But as the years passed, Zitkala-Sa faded from public attention. She was rediscovered in the 1970s, and scholars have increasingly begun to reconstruct her life and work. Now two scholars from Duke University have collected the writings of Zitkala-Sa (pronounced Zit-KA-la Sha) in a Penguin Classic edition -- the first Native American writer to be included in this prestigious series.

'American Indian Stories, Legends and Other Writings' (Penguin Classics, 2003) gathers Zitkala-Sa's autobiographical stories of Indian life, retold tales, poetry and journalistic writing, along with an extensive introduction, recommended reading and notes.

'It's always strange for history to lose somebody who was so influential and so promising,' said Cathy N. Davidson, Ruth F. DeVarney Professor of English and Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies at Duke. Davidson co-edited the edition with Ada Norris, a Duke doctoral student in English who is writing her dissertation on Zitkala-Sa.

'She devoted herself to great writing in the service of passionate activism,' Davidson said.

Zitkala-Sa was born Gertrude Simmons on the Yankton Reservation in 1876, the year of the Battle of Little Big Horn, and died in 1938. She lived through a period of major transition in white-Indian relations, including aggression against Native Americans by the U.S. government and, later, a massive assimilation policy.

She was educated at white boarding schools -- an experience poignantly depicted in her short stories such as 'The School Days of an Indian Girl' -- and attended the New England Conservatory of Music. After her early success in the literary world, she became the secretary-treasurer of the first pan-Indian political organization and editor of its magazine, American Indian Magazine, from which some of the pieces in the book are drawn. She was also founder and president of the National Council of American Indians.

Norris traveled to Utah to research the later half of Zitkala-Sa's life, after she turned from the Eastern literary establishment to political activism in the West. Still, she remained a writer, Norris said.

'She kept writing short sketches, even as she switches over to political work,' Norris said. 'I definitely approach her as a writer -- a writer deeply committed to a set of politics.' Zitkala-Sa also was a co-author of an opera called 'The Sun Dance,' which combines her writing, music and activism in a work that celebrates the Sun Dance ritual, a Native American celebration that had been repeatedly quashed by the federal government. The opera was first performed in Utah in 1913, and revived on Broadway in 1938.

Davidson said she first encountered Zitkala-Sa's stories in the 1970s, while going through old issues of the Atlantic Monthly for another project. At first, she said, she thought the tales -- mostly fictionalized versions of Zitkala-Sa's experiences as a girl -- were written by a white person masquerading as an Indian. But the emotional power, narrative voice and perspective were very different from the sentimental style typical of writing about Indian life at the time, she said. 'It was incredible writing,' Davidson said.

Davidson said she is especially pleased that Zitkala-Sa was chosen as the first Native American writer for the Penguin Classics series. 'It really is a stamp of a different kind of acceptance and approval,' she said.

Added Norris, 'This Penguin edition really brings Zitkala-Sa all the way into the mainstream.'

Davidson can be reached for additional comment at (919) 684-1964 or by e-mail at cathy.davidson@duke.edu. Norris can be reached by e-mail at ada.norris@duke.edu.