American Myths, Legends and Folklore

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America, as we know it today, has many myths, legends and folktales that make up its rich history. As children we are told about fascinating characters, tall tales and somewhat unbelievable stories. A myth is usually a well known story of how or why something is done a certain way and believed by many people, but isn’t entirely true. A legend is a story from the past that can not be verified as true, but is still believed by many people. Finally, a folktale is a traditional story that is passed among generations but has no origin and is usually timeless and placeless. One great American myth revolves around thanksgiving and the Pilgrims. Many people know about the Pilgrim’s coming to America in search of a new home and are welcomed by the natives that lived here. There was a nice banquet to give thanks with a cornucopia of food, native corn and the most famous turkey. At least that is what we have been told. But little is really known about the first meal that included about 50 Pilgrims and about 90 Wampanoag American Indian men. It is been said that there were 5 deer brought by the Wampanoag and that the settlers had shot some wild birds. Moreover, since we are talking about Massachusetts in October 1621, we can assume that the harvest would have been brought in and there would be plenty of vegetables. Also, lobsters fish, clams, nuts and wheat were also available in the area to supplement a feast of about 140 people. What we do know for sure was from a letter written by Edward Winslow, the leader of the Colony, which was lost for 200 years. The feast was actually a harvest festival and was not meant to be a yearly ritual. The name “Thanksgiving” was added by the Boston publisher, Alexander Young, in 1841. In 1863, Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday. It wasn’t until 1941 when President Roosevelt picked the fourth Thursday of

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