Everyone is on the move in this novel, road trips abound and in order to hit the road what do we need? — a road map. At the same time, Lionel, Charlie and Alberta are each seeking direction in life. As Goldman says, “mapping is a central metaphor” (24) of this novel. Maps chart territory and provide directions, they also create borders and boundaries and they help us to find our way. There is more than one way to map, and just as this novel plays with conflicting story traditions, I think King is also playing with conflicting ways to chart territory. What do you think lies at the centre of King’s mapping metaphor?
Hey everyone! I hope you’re doing well! The central metaphor of mapping, a symbol for the protagonists longing to find a place in the world, in Green Grass, Running Water by Thomas King is a recurring theme in his novel.
This “place” can be seen in a very abstract way. While a map usually is a piece of paper with some lines and coloured areas, as a metaphor it is that and so much more. A map can act as a metaphor for your place in life; your goals. It can act as a metaphor for rough times when you have “lost your way” and feel “lost.” Our language is full of map-themed metaphors to symbolize our longing to find the “right” place in our life, and define this place.
And, while maps can provide guidance, the mere existence of a map does not always help you to find your way. Not only do you have to be able to connect the map with the real world, to be able to read it and find directions, you also have to know where you are right now for a map to be useful. And even then, a map is just a tool to help you find your way. If you don’t know where you are headed, a map might help you find places, but you might still feel lost. In the end, it is you who has to find your path, your way in life. A map could protect you and could help you from losing your way, but a map is just a tool, not a solution.
For this blog post, I decided to do some research on what mapping means to Indigenous people. I found this interesting chapter from a book (Lewis). For Indigenous People maps had a different meaning than for most European colonizers. While maps for European colonizers were oftentimes tools to mark territory, to show treaties, and to visualize properties and divide them up for consumption, Indigenous Peoples maps often have other meanings. Indigenous maps “were born of experience and oral tradition, not an ascribed archival history in the Western sense.” Yes, the occasional Indigenous map might be used to visualize boundaries between different tribes, but maps were meant to represent nature, to show where to hunt, where to live, where to bury the dead, etc.
One passage in Marlene Goldman’s (Goldman). article says:
“Native American peoples have repeatedly asserted the legitimacy of their own maps and contested European maps and strategies of mapping, which have played such a central role in conceptualizing, codifying, and regulating the vision of the settler-invader society…”
This passage saddens me, as it reminds me of the brutality that colonization forced onto Indigenous people. The Indigenous people treated the land as their life, but the European colonizers, treated land as something they could consume, destroy, and discard, something which continues to this day. For example, big companies putting oil pipelines right through Indigenous people’s land (McSheffrey).
It’s interesting looking at the difference between Indigenous and European ways of mapping, and seeing how much it has to do with attitude and lifestyle. European colonizers using mapping for controlling, destroying, and discarding, versus Indigenous people using mapping as a way of discovering and documenting while living as one with nature.
Works cited:
Goldman, Marlene. “Mapping And Dreaming Native Resistance In Green Grass, Running Water.” CanLit. N.p. 2015. 19. Web. 09 Nov. 2016.
Lewis, G. Malcolm. “Chapter 4 Maps, Mapmaking, and Map Use by Native North Americans.” The History Of Cartography. Vol. 3. Chicago: U Of Chicago, 1998. 52. University Of Chicago Press. Web. 09 Nov. 2016.
McSheffrey, Elizabeth. “First Nations across North America Sign Treaty Alliance against the Oilsands.” National Observer. N.p., 22 Sept. 2016. Web. 09 Nov. 2016.
Hi Danielle,
Thanks for this post. I thought it was really interesting to focus on the differences in how maps were used by the Indigenous and European people. It would be interesting to see the visual difference between their maps. Were you able to track down any images of Indigenous maps that represented what you explained? Perhaps they look similar to European maps, but are just read in a different way.
Thanks!
-Jenny Bachynski
Hi, Jenny! Thanks for the comment! I wasn’t actually able to find a map. They’re quite hard to find, otherwise, I would have put a picture of it on my blog post! I really wanted to so that I could compare the differences! It is possible that maybe they do look similar to European maps but are read in a different way. I think that from what I read, though, they usually look different too!
Hi Danielle, nice post!
I was reading parts of the chapter you linked (Lewis), and I found it really interesting that it was very unlikely that the First Nations held a word for “map.” Maps were not inscribed but instead were orally determined based on tradition and experience. Do you think that the First Nations would have been able to contest their land claims better if their cultures had decided upon written mapping of various lands? Or do you think that the act of “western” mapping goes against their cultures that focus on interconnectivity and the ability for movement? Personally I think that even if they had mapped their land on paper, the Europeans would have discredited their claims merely on a racial basis (which is what they did anyway!). And I also think that the First Nations communities would have to change their lifestyles and culture to exist within specific boundaries like those of western culture, rather than maintaining loose territories.
Hi, Hannah! Thanks for the comment!
I also found it quite interesting that it was unlikely Indigenous people had a word for “map.” I believe that if Indigenous people had decided on written mapping of land, it’s possible that non-Indigenous people would have taken them more seriously, however, I highly doubt it would have helped much. I think just based on cultural differences non-Indigenous people would have claimed the land as their own like they have, since Europeans brought with them a sense of superiority.