The Truth About Creation Stories

Creation stories: the world's cultures provide many, and the importance of these stories varies between cultures. But how do these stories impact the general attitudes of a culture? In The Truth About Stories, Tom King compares and contrasts a Native American creation story with the Judeo-Christian creation story, and examines what effects these stories may have on our respective cultures.

The main differences between the stories are how the world is created. In the Native story, animals, a woman, and two children work together equally to create the world. No man is present, interestingly enough. Conversely, in the Judeo-Christian story, one male creator (God) makes the entire Earth and puts man in charge of women, children, animals, and the environment.

King argues that these stories have major impacts on the relationships our cultures have with the earth, animals, and other humans. Most Americans would affiliate themselves with the Judeo-Christian creation story, and our culture is strictly patriarchal and patrilineal and tends to treat animals, the environment, and even other people, often, as objects and as merely means to an end. On the other hand, Native Americans tend to have great respect for the environment, animals, and fellow humans. The Judeo-Christian creation story encourages domination over others through the presence of God and binary of good and evil. It encourages the idea that some groups are better than others and that "good" must reign over "evil." This doctrine was used to justify the overtaking of cultures like various Native American tribes, based upon the idea that their differences from Americans made them the "evil."

Can we then make the claim that the Judeo-Christian creation story has negative effects on American society--that it causes violence, imperialism, cruelty to animals, and environmental destruction? It makes Americans feel as though we have the right to do what we like to other living things without consequence. I would say this is a fairly negative attitude to have, especially taking into account how much damage has been inflicted upon humans, animals, and the environment due to this attitude. What should we for future generations, then? If our stories all that we are, we should strive to make those stories, and, consequently, ourselves, the best we can. If this Native creation story has the positive effects on society that I mentioned, perhaps it makes sense to at least mix the Native stories in with the Judeo-Christian stories we tell our children. Our society just may be better for it.