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Selfhood and Identity in Autobiographical Texts by Native American Authors

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Selfhood and Identity in Autobiographical Texts by Native American Authors İSTANBUL ÜNİVERSİTESİ Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Batı Dilleri ve Edebiyatları Anabilim Dalı Amerikan Kültürü ve Edebiyatı Bilim Dalı Doktora Tezi Self-Representations of the Misrepresented – Selfhood and Identity in Autobiographical Texts by Native American Authors (Amerikan Yerli Otobiyografilerinde Benlik ve Kimlik: Hatalı Temsil Edilenlerin Kendini Temsili) Defne Türker Demir 2502080286 Tez Danışmanı Prof. Dr. Ayşe Erbora İstanbul, 2012 ÖZ Amerikan Yerli Otobiyografilerinde Benlik ve Kimlik: Hatalı Temsil Edilenlerin Kendini Temsili Defne Türker Demir Amerikan Yerli Yazınını oluşturan metinler, politik amaçlı kimlik açılımları veya kimlik edinim eylemleri olarak özetlenebilir. Yüzyılları kapsayan bir çerçevede farklı biçimler kazanan Amerikan Yerli otobiyografilerinin bütününe bakıldığında; az sayıda istisna dışında, çeşitli kimlik kurguları örnekleyen bu metinlerin benzer yönelimler sergilediği gözlemlenir. Bu yönelimler kültürel örüntüler olup, metinsellik yolu ile kimlik kurgulayan bireylerin içselliklerine dair ipuçlarını kapsar. Amerikan Yerlilerinin otobiyografik metinlerinde Amerikan Yerli kimliği, birlik ve toplumsallık temelleri üzerine kurgulanmaktadır. Bu metinlerin merkezinde, benlik ve toplum arasında birliği sağlama amacı ve buna ait çaba yer alır. Çünkü bireyin bütünselliği için olmazsa olmaz önkoşul, birey ile aile/ toplum/ kabile arasında var olabilecek mesafenin kapatılmasıdır. Kısacası, metinlerde kurgulanan toplumsal bir kimliktir ve bu kimlik Amerikan Yerlilerinin geleneklerinden, tarihlerinden ve topraktan beslenir. Sözü edilen toplumsal yönelimin yanı sıra, Amerikan Yerli yazınında kimlik temsilini özgün kılan bir diğer nokta ise, metin ve yazar arasındaki birbirini besleyen ve üreten ilişkidir. Amerikan Yerli otobiyografilerinde, benlik metin üzerinden kurgulanır ve bu yolla metin, kurgulanan kimliğin temelini oluşturur. Böylelikle kelimenin yaratıcı gücü ile toplumsal kimlik üretilir. Her ne kadar günümüz Amerikan Yerli yazınında sözün yerini yazı almış olsa da, kelimeler sözlü yazına özgü mutlak yaratıcı güçlerini korurlar. Kelimeler benliği vücuda getirirken benlik de, metnin yaratım sürecinde, toplumun ve bütünün parçası olarak ortaya çıkar. Bu bağlamda, kimlik kurgusuna verilen önem, Amerikan Yerli yazınına has bir özellik iken, öyküler de kimlik üretiminin mutlak aracı halini alır. Sonuç olarak, Amerikan Yerli otobiyografilerinde özgün toplumsal kimlikler, sözlü yazın geleneğinin beslediği benlik örüntülerinin metin üzerinden üretimi veya kalıp tipler yolu ile yapılan temsillerin bozulması yöntemleri ile kurgulanır. Bu tez özelinde, erken dönem Amerikan Yerli yazını örneklerinden yola çıkılarak, çağdaş metinleri de kapsayan bir çerçeve çizilmiş, Zitkala-Ša, Scott Momaday, John Neihardt, Louis Owens, ve Sherman Alexie’nin yazınsal metinlerinin detaylı analizleri yapılırken, Paula Gunn Allen, Vine Deloria Jr., Louis Owens ve Gerald Vizenor’a ait kuramsal metinlerden yararlanılmıştır. iii ABSTRACT Self-Representations of the Misrepresented – Selfhood and Identity in Autobiographical Texts by Native American Authors Defne Türker Demir Native American literary practices can briefly be summarized as politically motivated acts of identity re-clamation. Looking at Native American autobiographical practices in their myriad forms over the centuries, it is possible to posit that with few exceptions, certain patters emerge that keep informing autobiographical texts that exhibit various positioning of subjectivities. These patterns are culture bound and give us clear clues to the perceptual horizons of the individuals that construct selves in textuality. As such, The Native American self is constructed through connectedness and communality. The attempt at establishing unision between the self and the community lies at the very crux of American Indian autobiographical practices, since the individual self needs to become whole while bridging any existing gaps between the self and the family/ tribe/ clan. In short the subjectivity created in textuality is a communal selfhood, which is firmly located within the sites of the history of the Native American peoples and the land with which ties need to be forged. In a similar vein, it can be argued that the relationship between the text and the author is another marker of Native American modes of self- representation. In American Indian autobiographies, the self is constructed through textuality, and thus the text becomes the enabler of a subjectivity textually constructed. Consequently, through the creative power of the word, the communal self comes into being by way of textuality/ the written word. Thus orality now replaced by textuality, still attains the creative power of the word, since the word brings into being the self that creates the text and is created in the process as part of the community/ as part of the whole he/she does or opts to belong to. Then, the imminent aspect of Native American literary practices is its concern with identity politics, and stories are the ultimate means of identity construction. Hence, selfhoods, which are informed by traditional modes of oral literature are constructed or fake selfhoods are deconstructed through the refutation of stereotypical representations. In this context, from the earlier examples, to present day depictions, the works of Zitkala-Ša, Scott Momaday, John Neihardt, Louis Owens, and Sherman Alexie are studied in detail alongside the critical works of Paula Gunn Allen, Vine Deloria Jr., and Gerald Vizenor. iv PREFACE The purpose of this dissertation is to try and delineate the construction of selfhood and identity in self-representations of Native American authors. Accordingly, the texts chosen include the earlier examples, as well as the present day Post-modern depictions of American Indian identity configurations. Thus, this study focuses on the works of Zitkala-Ša, Scott Momaday, John Neihardt, Louis Owens, and Sherman Alexie, in attempting to comprise as broad a perspective as possible. In terms of the critical works, it is again the theories voiced by Native American authors and literary critics that form the background of this dissertation, especially those by Paula Gunn Allen, Vine Deloria Jr., Louis Owens and Gerald Vizenor. As such, the aim of the author is to be able to approach and analyze Native American literary texts from the critical perspective of yet again Native American critics. Hence, the purpose of the dissertation is to read literary works of Native American authors based on the historical perspectives, critical appreciations, and point of views of the Native American peoples, and not from a Western view point, since the mainstream readings of these texts remain oblivious to the innate cultural codes of the peoples, and consequently continue to objectify, sideline, mute and assimilate the indigenous voices. Then the objective was to approach these literary texts grounded in the cultural and critical perspectives of the peoples in question. Therefore, although such a cross-cultural analysis pauses a major challenge, the author’s analysis and reading of these texts were informed by the cultural norms and the inner dynamics imminent to Native American textualities and peoples. With this opportunity, the author would like to express her deepest gratitude to the people who have greatly aided her in the writing of this dissertation. First of all, I would like to express my inestimable indebtedness to Prof. Dr. Ayşe Erbora, for teaching me so much about literature and life over the years, for the much required direction she provided me with, and for the sacrifices she has made in conducting this dissertation. I am truly privileged to have her in my life, hopefully always. I also wish to express my gratitude to Prof. Dr. Özden Sözalan and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ayşe Ece for their guidance, advice, and helpful suggestions. I would further like to thank Assoc. Prof. Dr. Türkan Araz, Asst. Prof. Dr. Hasine Şen Karadeniz and Asst. Prof. Dr. Nezir Yunusoğlu for the insight and goodwill during the time I spent in this programme. With this opportunity, I would also like to express my immense gratitude to Asst. Prof. Dr. Çiler Özbayrak, and to Prof. Dr. Oya Oğuz for always being there for me, in rain or shine. I am indeed very lucky, having received their selfless support and encouragement. I have also been very fortunate in getting invaluable input from Prof. Dr. Dilek Doltaş who during the writing of my MA thesis, took the time and effort to provide me with the tools necessary for the completion of this dissertation. I remain grateful to Asst. Prof. Dr. Clare Brandabur, for mentoring and inspiring me always, and for changing my outlook on life. Special thanks go to Asst. Prof. Dr. Özlem Öğüt Yazıcıoğlu for v believing in me in word and deed, and to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Maureen Shanahan, for the plots and the plans, and to and Dr. Nur Sılay for the positive attitude and the sound advice. I would like to thank my family for being my rock. To Murat Demir for all these years of true joy and care, and for making me whole. I further thank him for the dreams, and the other reality which he made me realize is possible. To Yeşil Başar for the butterflies, and for always going the extra mile(s), and again for leading me onto this path by introducing me to Selma Lagerlöf and Aziz Nesin. To Engin Türker for his unwavering trust and support, and the sumptuous Roman banquets. To Şilen Türker for being my panic hole. To Dr. Dilek Başar Başkaya for providing me with a role model, from very early on. To Ahmet & Mehmet
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