Native American culture and traditions

Education of Little Tree

Age and Tradition in the Education of Little Tree

Tradition is an essential element in any coming of age story, and the 1997 film The Education of Little Tree (adapted from a novel o the same title) is certainly no exception. In this film, an eight-year-old orphaned boy of Cherokee heritage named Little Tree is sent first to live with his grandparents who instruct him in Cherokee traditional ways and the history of his people, and is then removed to a Catholic school where his name is changed and the authority figures attempt to rob him of his identity as a Native American. The conflict in the film centers around Little Tree's attempt to hold on to his newfound traditions while being indoctrinated in the ways of the people he has come to regard as his enemy. His coming of age depends on his successful navigation and understanding of the two seemingly separate worlds to which he belongs, and his youth is a prime factor in his changing sense of identity in the film.

Little Tree's age makes him especially malleable to the whims and instructions of the various authority figures he encounters in the film. At the same time, he as at the age when personality and philosophies begin to form, and though they do not necessarily solidify for many more years, his age during the film is vital to Little Tree's -- and the movies -- progression. His age makes him still impressionable and still malleable; he first leanrs about his Cherokee culture and heritage from the perspective of an outsider, feeling as alien as he is viewed. This is demonstrated in the conversation with the girl who notices his moccasins; she is fascinated by his strangeness and in a certain way her fascination allows him to begin to own his identity as a member of the Cherokee nation. Her age, and her frank wonder, allows him to see himself with the same sort of wide-eyed wonder and amazement regarding his heritage.

The age of Little Tree's initial caretakers in the film -- that is, his Granma and Granpa -- is also very important for the construction of identity in The Education of Little Tree. This is true on several levels; first, their age naturally gives them a certain universal authority, especially over Little Tree himself. As the primary parental figures in the film, they (especially Granpa) actively and consciously shape Little Tree's identity by informing him of the Cherokee history and the way they suffered at the hands of the government and the white settlers, and indoctrinating him in the world and community they currently occupy. The impact of their age and wisdom on the impressionable young Little Tree is clearly shown in Little Tree's retelling of his Granma's words: "when you come on something good, first thing to do is share it with whoever you can find; that way, the good spreads out no telling where it will go. Which is right."