Hello Readers!
Welcome back to today’s blog! Today I will be sharing my understanding of Lee Maracle’s work about myth-building in “Toward a National Literature: A Body of Writing” and then comparing it to parts of “The Bush Garden; Essays on the Canadian Imagination” by Fraye. I found that both of these pieces had important points to make surrounding what makes Canada, Canada.
With this being said, I believe the point that Maracle was trying to make in her answer is that we (Canadians and Indigenous peoples) are trying to decolonize our learning and reclaim our traditions. We now have many Indigenous authors helping with this endeavour in their many forms such as novels, memoirs, poems, plays and songs just to name a few. However, then comes the question about myths. Myths come in very different forms but through a Sto:lo perspective they are created to alter the path so they don’t make the same mistakes again. It is used as a teaching tool for those in future generations to make better decisions (Maracle 85). She also makes the point that this is very different from European culture as their myths are generally more focused on how to make it further in life and be more successful as an individual rather than a group.
With this brief summary, we then can compare it to Fraye’s introduction. In this introduction, they are talking about the creation of ecocriticism, its definition, and how it presents itself. With this being said they described ecocriticism as the interaction between culture and the environment, the realm that both includes and does not include the human (Frye xv). To which, I believe, is a very interesting description.
This brings me to my first comparison. In Marcles’s chapter, she mentions that Indigenous people think of their relationship with the land as a reciprocal one and that is what they are trying to reclaim. However, in Frye’s work, they are trying to discuss where nature begins and where it ends. This makes me believe that Europeans think of the land as theirs and they can take whatever they like without giving thanks. A second comparison is that in Frye’s book they discuss how ecocriticism came to be through settlers rather than Indigenous people. But in Maracle’s chapter, they discuss how Indigenous people viewed and worked the environment in a more holistic way.
I believe that both of them have very interesting ways in which myth-building was created in Canada. One was based on ways to not only better yourself but to help ensure that future generations will live a healthy life, whereas the other just enforces a glamourized myth of the Canadian wilderness and how “all Canadian” interact with nature in their backyard.
In conclusion, what I learned from this lesson is that Myths are created based on a true story and are adapted to what the people in that certain community believe in at that time. But, that does not mean that all the myths are good for the general public or maintaining a cohesive nation.
Works Cited-
Frye, Northrop. The Bush Garden; Essays on the Canadian Imagination. 2011 Toronto: Anansi. Print.
Maracle, Lee. “Toward a National Literature: A Body of Writing.” Across Cultures, Across Borders Canadian Aboriginal and Native American Literatures by Paul Warren Depasquale, Renate Eigenbrod, Emma Larocque (z-lib.org), Broadview, 2010. Print.
Hi Lenaya,
I really enjoyed reading your post. I though you had some great points about the different cultural backgrounds of myth building, and how they can be both cohesive and divisive. I think that it’s definitely interesting that most Canadians have a tendency to claim connection with land over country, but tend to forget that it is only though county (colonialism) that we came to this land in the first place.
I’m not sure if you have found your group member yet for your project, but I would love to work with you. I’m a Creative Writing major, so I have an extensive background in writing, as well as research. I am currently working while going to school, so my schedule can be a little tight for meet-ups, but I have a lot of experience working in a collaborative environment, and I am a ready and willing team member. Let me know if you would like to work together.
Thank you so much!
Holly
Hi Lenaya!
This is a very insightful blog post and I think you do a good job in comparing across the two different cultures in Canada with their social constructions of the natural world. I like your comparison from an ecocriticism perspective between the two cultures as European’s have a greater emphasis on how valuable nature is to society based on the resources value it provides. Indigenous culture takes a whole different where there is a greater interdependence between the community and the natural world in which there is less exploitation of the environment. In a time where there is a greater amount of attention forming around environmental issues like climate change, I think the field of ecocriticism will become an increasingly discussed topic within the field of academia as well.
I am also looking for a group to work with on the final project so if you are still looking for mates I would be more than happy to work with you. I only have classes 2 days a week right now so I have a pretty open schedule for meeting times. Let me know whenever!
KO
Hi Lenaya,
I’ve enjoyed reading your blog of the course of the semester and I was wondering if you would like to group up for the end-of-term project. I currently have not been able to match up with anyone yet.
I only have one other course besides this one, so my schedule is very open.
Let me know!
Thanks, Cayla
Update: I have Aidan in my group!
Hi Lenaya,
Interesting points in this post. Your discussion of ecocentrism got me thinking about Frye’s thoughts on how terrified settlers were of the vast natural landscape of Canada. He talks about being garrisoned against a terrifying nature. Strong words! He also discussed how terror of nature eventually turned to guilt as the land was more and more polluted. What kinds of myths do you think are born of this fear of (or guilt toward) the environment?