Why is it, according to Carlson or/and Wickwire, that Aboriginal stories that are influenced or informed by post-contact European events and issues are “discarded to the dustbin of scholarly interest”? (56).
According to Carlson, these allegedly post-contact stories are not of scholarly interest because they are viewed as inauthentic. The dictionary definition of authentic is “not false or copied; genuine; real.” Assuming we believe prophecies are not real, post-contact myths are inauthentic because they claim to be pre-contact when they must in fact be post-contact, being informed by the events of the Europeans’ arrival. The Salish prophecy about white men bringing literacy is a perfect example of this type of inauthenticity. What’s interesting is that the typical pre-contact Aboriginal myths should also be considered inauthentic by this definition. They are fictional stories pretending to be non-fiction, so they would be considered false. It’s easy to prove that myths are at least part fiction because we see so many variations of the same stories. Logically, they cannot all be 100% accurate. So what is the difference between these two scenarios?
I believe that it comes down to the idea of cultural authenticity, rather than story authenticity. Culture is a set of traditions, behaviours, and beliefs shared by a group of people. To mix one’s culture with another often comes with a sense of impurity; that it has been contaminated by another culture. So these post-contact myths are not seen as authentic because they are “less Native” than pre-contact myths. This is essentially a racist way of thinking and promotes the divide between “us” and “them”. Furthermore, it exacerbates the situation of mixed-race children who often don’t feel accepted by members of either race, rather than being accepted by both. The reality is that Europeans have spent enough time on the same continent as Aboriginals to become a part (although certainly not the whole) of their identity. Often Aboriginals define themselves in opposition to Europeans, as in the myth of Coyote and his paper-stealing twin, yet that still marks Europeans as a reference point. It is not realistic to think that two cultures could have so much contact, and not be influenced by each other. We certainly have been influenced by their culture. Moreover, outsiders do not get to determine what parts of Aboriginal culture are “more Native” or “less Native”. If they accept post-contact myths as an authentic part of their identity, then that is their right. That is their truth.
–
Works Cited
“Authenticity.” Dictionary.com. 2 Mar. 2016. Web.
Carlson, Keith Thor. “Orality and Literacy: The ‘Black and White’ of Salish History.” Orality & Literacy: Reflectins Across Disciplines. Ed. Carlson, Kristina Fagna, & Natalia Khamemko-Frieson. Toronto: U of Toronto P, 2011. 43-72. Print.
Connolly, Colleen. “Examining the Aboriginal influence on Western Canada.” The Cord. WLU Student Publications, 30 May 2012. Web. 7 Mar. 2016.
Heath, Joseph. “How to beat racism.” National Post. Postmedia, 19 Apr. 2014. Web. 7 Mar. 2016.
Hey Caitlin,
Thank you for your post. You highlighted some very essential points regarding cultural authenticity. I think you are completely correct, in that outsiders do not have the right to determine which part of the Aboriginal culture is more or less “Native”. As it is exemplified extensively today, as you note, I do think that perceiving a race as inauthentic based on their degree of purity is indeed racist, for the blending and influence of varying cultures and races does not contaminate or lessen the significance of any other. Your reference to mixed-race children was spot on; it makes you wonder about the barriers that still exist for those that of mixed-race, and the discrimination they are forced to endure by those that may uphold this racist sort of mindset.
In this regard, I think that your remark regarding the fact that it ultimately comes down to cultural authenticity rather than story authenticity is immensely pertinent to note. Thank you for emphasizing the, what I think to be oftentimes overlooked, importance of cultural authenticity!
Neia 🙂
Hi Neia,
Thanks for your comment! I think you’re right that there’s a lot of barriers that still exist for mixed-race children. It’s interesting how we consider anyone with African blood to be black even though they may have just as much caucasian blood in them. There’s also an interesting phenomenon where in lighter-skinned black people are considered “more palatable to the mainstream” in terms of the entertainment industry (I’m quoting the article linked at the end of my comment). This upsets darker-skinned black people who obviously want to be accepted themselves, plus lighter-skinned black people are usually mulattos (or have mulatto in their bloodline) which means they are children of a slave and slave owner. There’s so much history to all this, and so much hurt. It’s hard to imagine how we could unwind it all. http://www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2007/08/05/bewitched_bothered_beyonc/?page=1
As you have discussed, authenticity is the main problem with Aboriginal myths: “Assuming we believe prophecies are not real, post-contact myths are inauthentic because they claim to be pre-contact when they must in fact be post-contact, being informed by the events of the Europeans’ arrival. The Salish prophecy about white men bringing literacy is a perfect example of this type of inauthenticity.” In my opinion, the problem with Carlson’s viewpoint is his blindness or deliberate refusal to accept that prophesies can be true. In Kenya, for instance, an old village magician known as Olaibon prophesied the coming of the “big snake” which later turned out to be the railways built by the British. Such stories cannot be dismissed. How can one attempt to understand the Aboriginals from his or her own skewed viewpoint?
Hi Caitlin!
I really like your post and I feel like you are exactly right with your assertions of cultural authenticity. Unfortunately, I feel like racism is extremely prevalent when outsiders are examining the authenticity/inauthenticity of a story and I was unable to understand that prior to this lesson. Your example of the struggles faced by mixed children is wonderful and it got me thinking about the effects of the division of culture and race. On that note, do you think there are any other present day examples of the effects of cultural authenticity derived from “the divide between ‘us’ and ‘them'” ?
Thanks for the great read 🙂
Cait
Hi Cait,
Thank you for your comment! You pose an interesting question. I think one area where racial authenticity plays a big part is in tv and film casting when a character is race-specific. For example, in the Twilight movies, Jacob’s character is supposed to be Aboriginal, but the actor who played him, Taylor Lautner, was not Aboriginal. They casted him because he looked like he was Aboriginal, but people were upset that this was inauthentic. So if it’s important to us as a society to have racial authenticity for race-specific characters in film, the question then becomes: how diluted can they be? At what point do we not consider someone Aboriginal enough to play an Aboriginal? It’s the same sticky question that comes up in terms of who gets Native status and who doesn’t. I certainly don’t know the right answer!
Regards,
Caitlin