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ECOPOETICS AND THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF LANDSCAPE: INTERPRETING INDIGENOUS AND LATVIAN ANCESTRAL ONTOLOGIES ANDREJS KULNIEKS A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN EDUCATION YORK UNIVERSITY, TORONTO, ONTARIO SEPTEMBER 2008 Library and Archives Bibliotheque et 1*1 Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-54092-3 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-54092-3 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lntemet, prefer, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la these ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privee, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont ete enleves de thesis. cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. 1+1 Canada ECOPOETICS AND THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF LANDSCAPE: INTERPRETING INDIGENOUS AND LATVIAN ANCESTRAL ONTOLOGIES by Andrejs Kulnieks a dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies of York University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY © 2008 Permission has been granted to: a) YORK UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES to lend or sell copies of this dissertation in paper, microform or electronic formats, and b) LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA to reproduce, lend, distribute, or sell copies of this dissertation anywhere in the world in microform, paper or electronic formats and to authorize or procure the reproduction, loan, distribution or sale of copies of this dissertation anywhere in the world in micro form, paper or electronic formats. The author reserves other publication rights, and neither the dissertation nor extensive extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the author's written permission. iv Abstract ECOPOETICS AND THE EPISTEMOLOGY OF LANDSCAPE: INTERPRETING INDIGENOUS AND LATVIAN ANCESTRAL ONTOLOGIES Doctor of Philosophy 2008 Andrejs Kulnieks Faculty of Graduate Studies in Education York University Although the importance of a culture of literacy dominates educational research, Oral Traditions have resurfaced with renewed interest in the correspondence between landscape and language. Singing, dancing, and living in the recognition of the continued relevance of ancestral songs is a (re)construction and (re)conceptulization of Latvian culture which encompasses teachings and traditions embodied in dainas, teikas, tautas pasakas and tautas dziesmas, which could be translated as stories and songs of the people. My exploration of the question "Is all land sacred?" includes a critical examination of photographs, travel logs, and poetic writing that have developed as part of V my fieldwork. Through an investigation of teachings of Latvian and Mohawk Elders, I explore the cultural process characterizing the spiritual connection and eco-poetic response to Australian, North-American, and Latvian landscapes. In their totality, these foci offer a plausible answer to central questions about culturally restorative practices within environmental education. VI Dedication Page For Janis, senior and junior, Mara, Indulis, Zelma, Viktors and other family members who have strived to uphold a responsibility of developing a relationship with the places they live. I would also like to dedicate this work to the North American Latvian community in the hope that the work of our Elders does not become forgotten in processes of becoming naturalized in the places they now live. I would especially like to thank my family and friends who have walked with me along paths of complex forms of inquiry that these dissertational practices have inspired. vii Acknowledgments I would like to thank my Elders which include teachers and professors who have helped me through this process of finding the language and energy to develop these ideas into print and towards their Oral form. In particular, I would like to thank professors Joe Sheridan, Jamie Scott, Harry Smaller, Leesa Faucett, Rishma Dunlop, Margo Swiss, and Warren Crichlow for their guidance during and throughout the work of this journey. I would also like to thank Dan Longboat and other Elders for their support and guidance over the years. It has been an honour and a privilege to work with this group of thinkers and scholars. In particular, I would like to thank my friend and colleague Kelly Young for the thought provoking discussions, from focal practices to poetic insights. I would also like to thank research informants and participants who helped make this work possible. Paldies Edgar, for years of listening and providing me with pedagogical insights from a lifetime of working within the Latvian community, Laimon, for convincing me to stay in the Toronto Dizskauts, Daina, for having the right words, Zigs, for asking me to dance, Ariana, for nurturing our love for the Latvian Mythopoetic, Mirdza, for helping me develop an understanding for the Latvian ethic, Mr. Briedis, for providing invaluable insight in my translations, and my friends who have been beside me all along. Although bibliographic information may suggest a predominantly male influence, I would like to acknowledge that although the knowledge that has been viii bestowed upon me by women thinkers and Elders that has been so essential to the development of this work. ix Table of Contents Copyright page 2 Certificate or authenticity page 3 Abstract iv Dedication Page vz Acknowledgments vii Table of Contents ix List of Figures xii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1 CONTRADICTIONS OF ORAL AND LITERARY TRADITIONS 3 WHY ENVIRONMENTAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY? 7 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 14 How ARE COLONIALISM AND ORAL TRADITION RELATED 16 MAPPING A CURRICULUM OF LATVIAN LANGUAGE 18 LANDSCAPES OF CURRICULUM: THE CURRERE OF LANGUAGE LEARNING 22 TRANSLATING PATHS OF STORIES AND ECOLOGY 24 RE-CONCEPTUALIZING LATVIAN MOVEMENTS OF DIASPORA 31 DATA COLLECTION: INTERPRETING MUSICAL LANGUAGE OF POETIC CREATION.. 35 ENVIRONMENTAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY 41 CHAPTER SUMMARY 46 CHAPTER II: ECOLOGICAL LITERACY AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF IDENTITY: A REVIEW OF VANISHING VOICES: THE EXTINCTION OF THE WORLD'S LANGUAGES. 52 CONTEXTUALIZING POINTS OF INFLUENCE 52 CHAPTER III: LATVIAN ANCESTRAL SONGS, STORIES AND DANCES: A HERMENEUTIC INQUIRY. 65 X AN ECO-HERMENEUTIC LENS 65 ORAL TRADITION 68 DISCERNING A PROCESS OF MEANING-MAKING 72 ENVIRONMENTAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY: REMEMBERING ROOTS 78 NORTH COUNTRY 84 THE COTTAGE 90 THE FARM 92 GRANDFATHER STORIES 98 GRANDMOTHER WISDOM 105 GAREZERS 108 SCOUTING ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION 114 CHAPTER IV: REINTERPRETING ANCESTRAL STORIES: TRACING LANGUAGE LEARNING TRADITIONS THROUGH THE LATVIAN SCOUTING MOVEMENT 123 METAPHOR AND LANDSCAPE 125 MEDIATING A CULTURE OF CONSUMERISM 132 ECO-LITERACY: A PATH TOWARDS ANCESTRAL KNOWLEDGE 136 FOUNDERS OF THE MOVEMENT 141 IMPLICATIONS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION 145 CHAPTER V: DISCERNING A PROCESS OF MEANING-MAKING THROUGH FOCAL PRACTICES: BECOMING FAMILIAR WITH THE LANDSCAPES OFSAULAINE THROUGH LATVIAN TRADITIONS 149 MERGING MODERN AND ANCESTRAL FOCAL PRACTICES 149 LOCAL INTERACTION WITH PLACE 155 CHANGES IN PLACE AND MIND: AN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE 156 THE LANGUAGE OF POETRY 158 ECOPOETRY 164 FOCAL PRACTICES IN SAULAINE-A SUNNY PLACE 166 THE PEDAGOGY OF ANCESTRAL FOODS 171 THE SACREDNESS OF TREES 173 CHAPTER VI: REDISCOVERING TRADITIONAL TEACHING AND LANGUAGE LEARNING: INTERPRETING A JOURNEY OF STORY, SONG, AND DANCE A T CAMP GAREZERS 178 DANCING BETWEEN LANGUAGES 178 XI MAPPING THE COURSE 184 PEDAGOGIES OF SONG 188 INTERPRETING MOVEMENT AND DANCE 192 RECREATING TRADITIONAL ARTS 195 A PEDAGOGY OF LANGUAGE BEYOND THE VALLEY OF SONG 199 CHAPTER VII: LANDSCAPE AND ORALITY: IMPLICATIONS FOR PEDAGOGY.. 203 TRANSLATING ECO-POETIC STORIES AND LITERACIES: ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP 203 ETHNOGRAPHIC LITERACIES AND PRACTICE 207 ECOLOGIES OF STORIES 210 TRANSLATING LITERARY AND ORAL TRADITION 214 POETRY AS ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION 218 IMPLICATIONS FOR PEDAGOGY 223 CHAPTER VIII: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH.. 228 INTERPRETING A LATVIAN ECO-POETIC JOURNEY IN AUSTRALIAN, EUROPEAN AND NORTH-AMERICAN