Hello class! My name is Emilia. I live and work here in Vancouver. I actually graduated from UBC in 2009 with a major in Theatre and a minor in English Literature. I’m taking three classes this semester to meet the updated requirements for the Bachelor of Education program at UBC. One of the other classes I am enrolled in is English 373, “Indigenous Poetics in North America”, and I’m curious if anyone else is taking or has taken that class as well? I’m finding that these two classes are symbiotic in their focus and I am hopeful that I can continue to use each class to inform the other. While taking these additional classes are stressful, I am grateful UBC is including Indigenous materials as requirements considering it is located on unceded Musqueam territory. After being off campus for nearly a decade I’m pleased to see a change in Musqueam and indigenous representation on campus and in curriculum, however I do feel there is a significant distance to go in terms of further representation and understanding Musqueam history.
My mother’s side of the Family is French Canadian settlers, and my father’s side is Italian immigrants. It is my hope that through this class I can explore my own identity as a settler/immigrant living and thriving in Canada and how to consolidate that existence with reconciliation, decolonization, and the indigenous experience. This class aims to focus on the element of story telling, a central component to both education and cultural preservation within indigenous communities. I recommend this short video to learn about a piece of Musqueam history as told in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ with subtitles. The iconic image I chose to to include on my blog is of anti-fracking protester Amanda Polchies from 2013. This image was prolific globally as a symbol of strength. As Amanda Polchies says of the image, “Holding that feather was kind of like a middle finger, really,” (Muzyka, 2019). To me this image is the embodiment of resistance and resilience of First Nations. First Nations groups continue to be on the front lines of the global warming crisis protests and lead the rest of us by example.
To be honest I’m feeling nervous and overwhelmed by the element of technology in this class. I’ve never created a blog before, or even used power point. I’m hoping to not struggle too intensely with adapting to new media, but if anyone has any tips I warmly welcome them!
Works Cited:
“Oral Traditions.” Indigenousfoundations, 2009, https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/oral_traditions/.
Museum of Anthropology. “The Origin of the Name Musqueam.” YouTube, YouTube, 20 Sept. 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fyu85CqwYZw&feature=youtu.be.
“Woman in Iconic Anti-Fracking Photo Calls It a ‘Middle Finger’ to the Industry | CBC Radio.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 11 Jan. 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/radio/unreserved/iconic-indigenous-imagery-how-photos-shape-movements-and-connect-us-to-history-1.4963770/woman-in-iconic-anti-fracking-photo-calls-it-a-middle-finger-to-the-industry-1.4971738.
Hi Emilia!
I was immediately engaged in your blog as I too am an English lit major and theatre minor student with the intent to get into the Bachelor of Education at UBC! Though I am in my third year at UBC, I love connecting with people who are on the same path as I am, and even more so yourself who has already graduated! I look forward to getting to virtually know you a little more this semester and perhaps picking your brain on your experience!
I took a look at the video you linked and found it so interesting. I have never actually heard the language spoken outside of direct phrases for assemblies and presentations, so listening to the story of the origin of the Musqueam name, in the native tongue was very captivating to me. This being said, the First Nations culture is one that is extremely oral in nature, with stories being transferred through word of mouth, and things being stored as memories instead of on paper, and I wonder how you think that this might effect the academic, English based study of such? Do you think that the First Nations culture being an oral one effects the way we are able to study and learn about it in classroom (or virtual classroom) settings or do you think that we are still able to capture the essence through articles and papers such as featured in this course? I think that your answer will be interesting from an English literature student’s point of view as our entire basis for study is on written culture and texts.
I look forward to hearing back from your on this topic as I definitely have a few thoughts around it myself! Don’t worry I am equally technologically challenged, so I am sorry but I cannot offer much help in that category! Good luck!
Thanks for the reply! I look forward to working with you also! You pose and excellent question, one we are actually deep diving into in my Indigenous poetics course. What is the value of writing oral stories down, and in doing so, is the value of the tradition compromised? I don’t know the answer, but I would surmise in terms of preservation of culture and decolonization any advancement in Indigenous pedagogy that disrupts euro-centric education is worth it, even if it does mean having to participate in colonial language. In an attempt to manage my reading list I’ve actually been listening to the stories on audible. On one hand this feels a little bit like cheating, on the other it feels appropriate due to the history of oral tradition. I was concerned at first that I wouldn’t be able to focus on the stories, just hearing them, however I’ve found listening to be even more effective than reading. I’m less easily distracted and I can jot down notes as I go. The particular story I am listening to is also being read by a Cree narrator. This is again another form of technology, like the videos of Thomas King in the syllabus or the video I shared. All types of media coming together to story tell and preserve tradition. I wonder if the author knew when he wrote his book that someone would be listening to it? Almost a full circle moment!
Hi Emily,
A wonderful introduction Emily, thank you. I agree fully with your sentiment below and am excited to learn more about the symbiotic threads between the Poetics class and this. Who is your prof for 373?
“I would surmise in terms of preservation of culture and decolonization any advancement in Indigenous pedagogy that disrupts euro-centric education is worth it, even if it does mean having to participate in colonial language.”