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American Tall Tales & Legends
Legends are passed from one generation to the next and so, many of the works listed below belong to several literary periods. Throughout the course of the year, we will explore some of the legends and tall tales below:
Afro-American Folktales - recommended by The History Channel, this site contains many tales and lots of resources relating to Afro-American history.
Alice's Restaurant- read the lyrics to Arlo Guthrie's song that has become both a legend and a public radio Thanksgiving tradition.
The Guthrie Center - learn about the back story of the legend related Arlo Guthrie's song Alice's Restaurant.
Library of Congress - American Folklife Center - connect to all sorts of resources for ethnographic studies. Learn why any study of American Literature is not complete without a glimpse into American folklore.
John Henry -The Steel Driving Man - is the result of a University of North Carolina graduate student project. This site offers a historical context for the legend as well as lyrics to the song.
Shelly Duvall's American Tall Tales and Legends: John Henry- Watch this amazing dramatization of the legend of John Henry here:
