The keen is a part of the boat that is used to support the boat, as in the poem the keen is used as a symbol of a strong nation.
Explanation:
The first use of the keel represents stability that the boat needs to have on the water. The other use of keel is as a synecdoche.
In Witman’s poem, the steady keel is a symbol of a strong and stable nation, that although has to pass many obstacles it maintains itself strong. It represents the whole boat that carries the nation on its deck.
So the question is asking how the person thats telling the story use the story to explain facts about the natural world or specific Cherokee traditions. its sort like using the creation of the story as an example
