Here we have short blurbs about our academic backgrounds and our specific areas of interest within the larger idea of “Politics and Poetics in Métis Literature”!
Danae
I’m a 4th year English major with minor concentrations in Creative Writing and Art History. I enjoy Theatre and you can often find me working behind the scenes on productions in my spare time. As such, I find it of particular interest who people choose to represent themselves,, and, even more saliently, how others chose to represent them, and the theatricality and politics of life. My area of research concerns itself with contemporary Metis writers and the contrast between their colonial counterparts as well as other First Nation writers, to investigate any commonality or disparity between artists of different influences. I’m interested to see what that means in terms of Metis identity, and how the diaspora has influenced social construct and collective consciousness.
I am a 4th year major in English Literature – with a minor in Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies. I love to read classical literature (Homer and the Aeneid), Victorian literature (Picture of Dorian Gray) and Russian literature (specifically Tolstoy and Dostoevsky). My area of interest is based on Pauline Johnson’s book, the Legends of Vancouver. My research stems off of a quote found in an article from Queen’s University which reviewed the novel. In the article Linda Quirk states that “Legends of Vancouver is a misleading title for the collection since it is not about George Vancouver’s explorations of the Pacific coast late in the eighteenth century or about the founding of the city of Vancouver late in the nineteenth century.” As a student of Classical Studies I find this astonishing as when I think of legends I do not automatically assume they are referring to the colonial narrative, but rather think of the native oral traditions of the area.
Tai
Tai Amy: I am going into my third year of a BFA acting degree and in the last year have slowly begun a double major in First Nations Studies. I am also part of Full Circle First Nations Performance therefor I spend alot of time studying First Nations stories and theater. As a person of Metis descent, I am interested in discovering why Metis culture is not recognized in modern canadian studies, as well as society. I am interested in examining the binary of the culture I was raised in, as well as the canadian awareness of the binary of culture throughout litterature. I want to focus partially on the book half breeds written by Maria Campbell as well as relating that to modern writing and pieces written by Pauline Johnson about Metis women in Canada. Through these pieces I hope to discover a Metis litterary treasure.