Three young girls encounter a mink who warns them of an approaching danger—a big man. Frightened, they seek refuge with their grandmother, who advises them to flee into the woods. When the big man arrives and questions the mink about the girls’ whereabouts, the mink remains silent and eventually escapes into the forest.
Source:
Ten’a Texts and Tales
(from Anvik, Alaska)
by John W. Chapman
The American Ethnological Society
Publications, Volume 6 (ed. Franz Boas)
E.J. Brill, Leyden, 1914
► Themes of the story
Trickster: The Mink exhibits cunning behavior, a hallmark of the trickster archetype.
Conflict with Authority: The big man’s threat to the Mink introduces a power struggle.
Family Dynamics: The little girls’ relationship with their grandmother highlights familial bonds.
► From the same Region or People
Learn more about Koyukon people
There were three little girls who lived in a little house. One of them saw a Mink coming. The Mink said, “Girls, there is a big man coming;” and these little girls were afraid, and ran into the house and told their grandmother; and their grandmother said, “Girls, run into the woods!” So they ran into the woods; and the big man came up and said, “Mink, where are the girls?” and the Mink did not answer. And the big man said, “Mink, I will kill you!” and the Mink ran into the woods.
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