Sir Winston Churchill once said, "Tradition is a guide but it can also be a jailer." Tradition, what is tradition? Tradition is something that is handed down. It can be as small as being a recipe for soup or as big as being passed down the throne to an empire. Tradition is in every family. An example of tradition that is celebrated in many of the world is getting presents during Christmas time or during one's birthday. Tradition is discussed in both Stones and Voices Rising. Stones portrayed tradition was good while the other story had a negative view on tradition. One thing that can be learnt is that tradition can define who we are but can also be what holds us back.
In Stones, tradition plays a major factor in the narrator’s life. The narrator’s family store is an example of tradition because it is pass down from generation to generation to be managed and owned. Also, just by hearing the details of the author, you can tell this store is very old fashioned and full of relics. Another example of tradition in this story is the way the boy treats his customers. Unlike the corporate world, the boy and his elders believed that if someone stole something, they should return the item and be forgiven. However, the corporate world usually had a belief that if something like this happened in their store, the person who stole it deserved to be punished. This is why the boy was not the right person to work in the corporate world. He was too soft hearted due to the ways he was taught by his parents and relatives. Their set of rules and rituals were different from the corporate world.
Tradition is portrayed differently in Voices Rising then it did in Stones. Tradition in this story was broken. For thousands of years, music that was associated with the Natives was more traditional genres, such as the pan flutes, drums and mesmerizing voices. Suddenly, a whole new type of music exploded into the Native culture; Hip Hop. Through hip-hop, the young people of the native tribes speak through their troubles and hard times through their music. Rap is like their voice. Native rap represents a whole new generation of Native tribes who are ready to break their tradition and destroy the old perception of “Indian”. The young culture of
