Katherena Vermette’S (2016A) the Break, and Eden Robinson’S (2017A) Son of a Trickster
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The understated power of reading contemporary Indigenous literature in Canada, a White supremacist nation by Halimah Beaulieu B.A. (Communications), Simon Fraser University, 2009 B.A. (English), Simon Fraser University, 2009 Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the Equity Studies in Education Program Faculty of Education © Halimah Beaulieu 2020 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Spring 2020 Copyright in this work rests with the author. Please ensure that any reproduction or re-use is done in accordance with the relevant national copyright legislation. Approval Name: Halimah Beaulieu Degree: Master of Arts Title: The understated power of reading contemporary Indigenous literature in Canada, a White supremacist nation Examining Committee: Chair: Lucy Le Mare Professor Dolores van der Wey Senior Supervisor Associate Professor Ena Lee Supervisor Assistant Professor Daniel Heath Justice External Examiner Professor First Nations and Indigenous Studies University of British Columbia Date Defended/Approved: April 23, 2020 ii Abstract This thesis offers a textual analysis of three contemporary novels by Indigenous writers in Canada – Tracey Lindberg’s (2015) Birdie, Katherena Vermette’s (2016a) The Break, and Eden Robinson’s (2017a) Son of a Trickster. Informed by critical Whiteness studies, scholarship on settler colonialism, and reader response theory, I argue how contemporary Indigenous literature facilitates the social and political transformation decolonization requires. When approached with prior knowledge about past and ongoing colonialism, the stories written by today’s Indigenous authors disrupt the settler national myths that normalizes White supremacy in Canada and demands introspection on how settlers perpetuate colonial violence against First Peoples. Their stories extend possibilities for transformative learning by re-centering Indigenous epistemologies and ontologies, and by reframing kindness, reciprocity, and kinship as human obligations. In creating space for us to imagine existing beyond the limitations set by the racial settler state, these stories can instigate shifts in cultural perceptions and power relations in real ways. These stories also hold implications for meaningful and constructive human rights- based social justice practices, by reshaping knowledge on antiracism and decolonization outside dominant frameworks that assume the colonial state’s legitimacy and permanence. Keywords: Indigenous literature; settler colonialism; critical whiteness studies; antiracism; decolonization; reader response theory iii Dedication For Khadijah McClement. I miss you everyday. iv Acknowledgements I am indebted to Dr. Dolores van der Wey for her wisdom, and for being generous with her knowledge and impeccable wit. Thank you for always listening with your head and heart, and for setting high standards. I, and many others learn (how little we know) because you continuously create space for questions and critical thinking. This journey would have been impossible without your guidance and kindness. I am thankful to Dr. Ena Lee, whose brilliance played an important role in conceiving this thesis. I am also incredibly honoured to have Dr. Daniel Heath Justice on my committee. Your work taught me that writing on Indigenous literature is not only a scholarly endeavour, but one that also involves matters of the heart. I am grateful to Indigenous writers like Katherena Vermette, Tracey Lindberg, Eden Robinson, Alicia Elliott, Dawn Dumont, Richard Wagamese, Lee Maracle and many others for writing such brilliant stories and sharing them. We are incredibly lucky to have these powerful stories to learn from, and I hope that there will be more to come. Thank you, Jeff Beaulieu for letting me dip my doughnuts in your tea. Raj Samra and Victoria Lam – thank you for cheering me on. You are proof that women of colour are smart, articulate and make good leaders. And finally, many thanks to Sam Walker who kept me running while I fought battles in my head. You are a wonderful person. v Table of Contents Approval .......................................................................................................................... ii Abstract .......................................................................................................................... iii Dedication ...................................................................................................................... iv Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ........................................................................................................... vi Introduction .............................................................................................. 1 1.1. Preface .................................................................................................................. 1 1.2. Introduction to Research ........................................................................................ 3 1.3. Research Positionality ........................................................................................... 5 1.4. Research Focus & Questions ................................................................................ 7 1.5. Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................ 12 1.6. Thesis Overview .................................................................................................. 13 Literature Review ................................................................................... 15 2.1. Introduction .......................................................................................................... 15 2.2. Contemporary Indigenous Literature in Canada: Taking in the Landscape .......... 16 2.3. Critical Whiteness Studies: This Settler Nation is a Racial… No, a White One .... 29 2.4. White Supremacy, Settler Colonialism & Indigenous-Settler Relations: Why Being Anti-Racist Is Not Enough ............................................................................................. 36 2.5. Reader Response Theory: Building a Bridge Between Text & Reader ................. 46 2.6. Conclusion: Crossing the Bridge .......................................................................... 52 Katherena Vermette (2016a)’s The Break: A Monumental Lesson on Love & Kindness ............................................................................................... 55 3.1. Staring Down the Pitiless White Gaze ................................................................. 55 3.2. Turning the White Gaze on Its Head (Also Done with Dignity) ............................. 68 Tracey Lindberg (2015)’s Birdie: Get Ready to Get Uncomfortable Settlers! .............................................................................................................. 79 4.1. The Continuum of Colonial Violence: Settled Expectations and Settler Fantasies 79 4.2. Start Exercising Your Imaginations Settlers – We Have Obligations to Fulfill! ...... 88 Eden Robinson’s (2017a) Son of a Trickster: Decolonization through Indigenous Wonderworks ................................................................................. 99 5.1. Move Over Settlers: Re-centring Indigenous Epistemologies, Ontologies and Cosmologies ................................................................................................................. 99 5.2. Indigenous Wonderworks: Modeling Better Relationships and Better Futures ... 112 Conclusion: What’s Love Got to Do with It? ...................................... 120 References ................................................................................................................. 130 vi Introduction 1.1. Preface “…I’m trying to read the book and understand what the story is about, but you know, in the first couple of pages… I’m trying to remember the quote… it’s something about… the witness of the crime is infuriated by the way White men say goodbye. And I’m like, White guys say goodbye a different way?” (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation [CBC], 2017a, 43:19) These were Jody Mitic’s initial thoughts on Métis writer Katherena Vermette’s (2016a) novel, The Break, which he shared on live broadcast as a Canada Reads 2017 panelist. Canada Reads is an annual ‘battle of the books’ competition organized and produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). In this competition, five Canadian celebrities select and champion through televised debates, the book they think the country should read (CBC, 2019). Vermette’s book in particular is about Stella, a young Métis mother – who unbeknownst to her at that time – witnesses her second cousin, thirteen-year-old Emily, being sexually assaulted in a barren field outside her house. The novel is woven together by the personal stories of ten characters, most of whom are related or connected to Emily. As their stories unravel, we hear the voices of Emily’s great-grandmother, grandmother, mother and aunt leading up to, and after her rape. The novel’s plot hinges on violent sexual assault, and showcases how such violence leaves a devastating legacy on families. The Native Women’s Association of 1 Canada (NWAC) estimates that close to 4,0001 Indigenous2 women were murdered or went missing between 1980 and 2012 (Tasker, 2016). The ongoing national inquiry into these missing and murdered women renders Vermette’s (2016a) story highly relevant. In her