An Insight into the Psychological Issues of Indigenous Women through First Nations Theatre
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61841/5c10gp13Keywords:
Indigenous People, Psychosocial Issues, Cultural Erasure, First Nations TheatreAbstract
Many indigenous people in Canada have been victims of forced dispersal to various parts of the United States on account of the cultural erasure scheme endorsed by colonizers. They undergo acute pain and sufferings due to various atrocities and violence against them. This study explores the significance of First Nations theatre, which unravels the lives of many Indigenous children who have been ripped off from their communities and displaced to different foster homes. Given the various forms of discrimination in terms of the settler’s cohesive policy making, the lack of adequate facilities at present, the study interrogates the assumptions of the “Imaginary Indian” propagated by the colonial discourse. With the implications of articles and texts on First Nations theatre, the study seeks to explicate and contextualize Marie Clements’ play, Tombs of the Vanishing Indian. The need to represent the real condition of Native people is vital so as to provoke social awareness and draw the attention of the world towards the hideous plot of the colonizers, which otherwise would go unnoticed. It also argues that First Nations theatre is a powerful platform of resistance against the inhuman colonial practice of cultural erasure, which affects the equilibrium of Native people’s lives. ¬ The study finds that First Nations theatre inculcates reality on stage so as to pave way for social change and to find a better space for the Indigenous people of the land.
Downloads
References
[1] “The Fur Trade.” (2015). Indigenous Canada: Looking Forward/ Looking Back. University of Alberta.
Print.
[2] “Trick or Treaty.” (2015). Indigenous Canada: Looking Forward/Looking Back. University of Alberta.
Print.
[3] Miller, James Rodger. (2009). Compact, contract, covenant: Aboriginal treaty-making in Canada.
University of Toronto Press. Print.
[4] Million, Dian. (2011), “Intense dreaming: Theories, narratives, and our search for home,” American Indian
Quarterly, Vol. 35(3), pp.313-333.
[5] Francis, Daniel. (2012). The Imaginary Indian: The image of the Indian in Canadian culture. Arsenal Pulp
Press. Print.
[6] Dussault, René, and Georges Erasmus. (1996). “Report of the royal commission on aboriginal peoples.”
[7] LaRocque, Emma. (2010). When the other is me: Native resistance discourse, 1850-1990. Univ. of
Manitoba Press. Print.
[8] Klose, Fabian. (2014). “Decolonization and Revolution Decolonization and Revolution.”
[9] Dey, Sayan. (2018). Different Spaces, Different Voices: A Rendezvous with Decoloniality.
Becomeshakespeare.com. Print.
[10] Filewod, Alan. (2005), ‘Receiving aboriginality: Tomson Highway and the crisis of cultural authenticity,’
Aboriginal Drama and Theatre: Critical Perspectives on Canadian Theatre in English, Volume One, Toronto:
Playwrights Canada Press. pp. 37-48. Print.
[11] Clements, Marie. (2005), “Aboriginal Theatre – an Introduction”, The Developmental Support to
Aboriginal Theatre Organizations Study, The Canada Council for the Arts.
[12] Clements, Marie. (2012). Tombs of the Vanishing Indian. Talonbooks, 2012. Print.
[13] Orr, Raymond, Katelyn Sharratt, and Muhammad Iqbal. (2018). “American Indian erasure and the logic of
elimination: an experimental study of depiction and support for resources and rights for tribes.” Journal of
Ethnic and Migration Studies, 1-22.
[14] Winton, Jenna. (2015). “The Impact of the ‘Vanishing” Image on Indigenous Communities.”
[15] Bielefeld, Shelley. (2010). “The dehumanizing violence of racism: the role of law.”
[16] Taylor, Drew. Hayden. (2000). The Boy in the Treehouse: Girl Who Loved Her Horses. Burnaby, BC:
Talonbooks. Print.
[17] Kerr, Ryan. (2011). “Review: Tombs of the Vanishing Indian (Native Earth Performance Arts and Red
Diva Projects).” Mooney on Theater.
[18] Berry, John W. (1994). “Aboriginal cultural identity.”. Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2020 AUTHOR
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
- The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
Under the following terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit , provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made . You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
Notices:
You do not have to comply with the license for elements of the material in the public domain or where your use is permitted by an applicable exception or limitation .
No warranties are given. The license may not give you all of the permissions necessary for your intended use. For example, other rights such as publicity, privacy, or moral rights may limit how you use the material.
