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2025 Redefining Americajailbird that he was. He flies around in stolen cars. Wherever he stops,kids grow like gourds from women%u2019s bellies.Like I said, no Indian I%u2019ve ever heard of has ever been or seen an angel.Maybe in a Christmas pageant or something%u2014Nazarene church holds one every December,organized by Pastor John%u2019s wife. It%u2019s no wonderPastor John%u2019s son is the angel%u2014everyone knows angels are white.Quit bothering with angels, I say. They%u2019re no good for Indians.Remember what happened last timesome white god came floating across the ocean?Truth is, there may be angels, but if there are angelsup there, living on clouds or sitting on thrones across the sea wearingvelvet robes and golden rings, drinking whiskey from silver cups,we%u2019re better off if they stay rich and fat and ugly and%u2019xactly where they are%u2014in their own distant heavens.You better hope you never see angels on the rez. If you do, they%u2019ll be marching you off toZion or Oklahoma, or some other hell they%u2019ve mapped out for us. 2012QUESTIONS Understanding and Interpreting1. %u201cAbecedarian Requiring Further Examination of Anglikan Seraphym Subjugation of a Wild Indian Rezervation%u201d opens with the statement that %u201cAngels don%u2019t come to thereservation.%u201d What do angels represent for the speaker of this poem? How does Natalie Diaz develop and transform the concept of angels as the poem unfolds? Consider lines 20%u201324 in particular.2. Diaz invents spelling in her title%u2014Anglikan, Seraphym, Rezervation%u2014but the spelling in the poem itself is conventional. Why do you think the words in the title have alternative spellings? What statement might Diaz be making with that choice?3. Why does the speaker tell the reader to %u201cQuit bothering with angels%u201d (l. 17)? How does she defend that statement? What does she mean by %u201clast time / some white god came floating across the ocean%u201d (ll. 18%u201319)?4. In Christian tradition, one of the most important of the Seraphim is the angel Gabriel. The speaker claims she%u2019s never heard of him. What does the substitute%u2014%u201cGabe%u201d%u2014say about the speaker%u2019s view of European customs and their place in American Indian cultures?QUESTIONS Analyzing Language, Style, and Structure5. Vocabulary in Context. What does the word %u201cjailbird%u201d (l. 10) mean? How does the play on words convey deeper meaning here?6. Why do you think Diaz chose the abecedarian form for her poem? How is it suited to a poem that comments on %u201csubjugation%u201d?7. How would you characterize the tone of this poem? Try to describe it in two or three words. How does this tone create a picture of the speaker?10152025Copyright %u00a9 Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. Distributed by Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers. For review purposes only. Not for redistribution.