# How the Rattlesnakes Came to Be What They Are explained — Zuni Folktales

> Chapter companion for Zuni Folktales by Frank Hamilton Cushing.

## What happens

A long time ago, the Rattlesnakes were a people living at Yathlpewʻnan. One day, children took their little sister to play on sandbanks, but an accident caused her death. Their mourning song and the parents' grief caused all the Rattlesnake people to transform into the crawling, wriggling rattlesnakes known today. The story concludes with a moral about not killing animals needlessly.

## Themes in this chapter

### Transformation and Identity

The Rattlesnake people transform into actual rattlesnakes as a result of grief and tragedy.

### Death and Mourning

The accidental death of the little girl and the communal mourning lead to the physical transformation.

### Folklore vs. Science

The story uses myth to explain the origin of rattlesnakes, contrasting with scientific explanations.

## Character check-ins

### Rattlesnakes

The Rattlesnake people who transform into rattlesnakes after the tragic accident.

### The Rattlesnake

The mother of the little girl who died; she swoons and wriggles, contributing to the transformation.

### The Old Grandmother

The grandmother who also cries out and swoons, joining the transformation.

## Key lines

> Tchi-tola tsaaana! Tchi-tola tsaaana! Tchi-tola tsaaana! Ama ma hama seta! Ama ma hama seta!

The children sang a mournful song as they carried their dead little sister home, repeating 'Rattlesnake little-little! Alas, we bear her!'

_This song is a key element of the mourning ritual that precedes the transformation._

> Ayaa mash toki! Ayaa mash toki! Hai! i i i i!

The mother and grandmother cried out in grief, wriggling and swooning, a cry that was echoed by all the Rattlesnake people.

_This cry and the accompanying wriggling motion directly lead to the physical change into rattlesnakes._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/zuni_folktales_se/chapters/how-the-rattlesnakes-came-to-be-what-they-are
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/zuni_folktales_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/zuni_folktales_se/chapters