This thesis focuses on the effects of the language of patriarchy on the power of Native American women, how these women have retained power in their own societies, and how an understanding of Native women's values can aid feminists. An examination of Native American women's literature provides a connecting bridge back to a time before patriarchy…

The formation of self-concept is seriously affected by both oral and written language; language also affects the ways people think about others. Young children in particular have not yet learned the abstract concept of the generic "he" and when a judge, author, or principal is referred to as "he", the child is subtly conditioned against the idea…