Within the traditional viewpoint of European literature, First Peoples stories come across as myths and legends. Taking on the label of children’s tales (Miracle), these stories have been stripped of their value. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Few First Nations writers are in a position to take the time to comb through the oratory, story, drama, and poetry in its original form and glean the principles of First Nations story creation from it.<\/em><\/p>
The body of our oratory in its totality and original form, free of the so-called interpretive teachings, is the oldest oratory and constitutes our sacred texts.<\/em> In order for criticism to arise naturally from within our culture, discourse must serve the same function it has always served. In Euro-society, literary criticism heightens the competition between writers and limits entry of new writers to preserve the original canon. What will its function be in our societies?<\/em><\/p>Lee Maracle (85)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\nMaracle writes that there are too few scholars who study “First Nations writing and writers” (84), and many are not First Nations themselves. The experts who are, “automatically becomes an expert” (85) in all First Nations cultures. The bodies of works within this field – within First Nations “oratory, story, drama, and poetry” (85) – are high in numbers, and the time it would take to sort through is too long for scholars to learn the principles that make up First Peoples literature. This poses a problem of bringing in more First Peoples representation into the developing nation of a decolonized Canada.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Traditionally, literary canons are subjectively determined by critics, writers, editors, and other scholars (Davey; Frye; Sanders). So what will the function of literary criticism be within our societies, when we have limited critics, editors, scholars who specialize in First Peoples literature? What values will be assigned? How will future canons be determined<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The idea of a canon of literature is the idea of “intellectual heritage, literature, and theoretical frameworks” (Maracle 92) being preserved to ensure the culture of a nation is preserved (Davey; Kramnick; Lecker).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But, how do we define Canadian culture – Canadian Heritage?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Frye and Maracle both advocate that Canada is a divided nation. We are connected by ” immense railways” (Frye 27). Each province – each group of peoples – identify in their own way. Can we have only one Canadian canon? Or dare we have many?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Maracle’s view, her society – Salish society – uses (and will continue to use) stories as a means to “grow and transform” (85) oneself into a self-actualized<\/a> member of society. Her society will continue to learn from past stories, and (re)create these story within a “modern context” (85).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is the responsibility of every Sto:lo to enter the world, to go out and create new stories so that we don\u2019t return to our ancestors boring. In one of our creation myths, we come here to create new story, to gain some sort of awareness of the impact of behaviour on hidden being (mind, spirit, and heart), so we can return to the world of hidden being and teach about consequences.<\/em><\/p>Maracle (85)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
The notion of ‘literacy’ is changing within the academic world. With it, the notion of the canon is as well (“Feminism and the Canadian Literary Canon”). Refuse<\/a><\/em>, a work of literature created by seeks to redefine<\/a> the Canadian ‘canon’ – CanLit – to be more inclusive, to appropriately represent Canada as a multicultural, diverse nation. The editors view their work as “a kind of community-formation and a kind of care-work” (14), showing a strong parallel to where Maracle sees her society as being headed in terms of criticism – of being represented accurately. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Editors even go as far as to reference Maracle’s 1988 reading of I Am Woman<\/a><\/em>, where she stormed the CanLit stadium<\/a> to have her voice heard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\nWorks Cited<\/p>\n
Davey, Frank. “Canadian Canons”. Critical Inquiry, vol. 16,<\/em> no. 6, 1990, pp. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
672-681. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Frye, Northrop. The Bush Garden: Essays on the Canadian Imagination, <\/em><\/p>\n
eBook. House of Anansi Press, 2017. Richmond Public Library.<\/em><\/p>\n
“Feminism and the Canadian Literary Canon”. CanLit Guides<\/em>. 15 November, <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
2016. www.canlitguides.ca\/canlit-guides-editorial-team\/an-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
introduction-to-gender-and-sexuality\/feminism-and-the-canadian-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
literary-canon\/. Accessed on 12 March, 2021.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Kramnick, Jonathan Brody. “The Making of the English Canon”. PMLA<\/em>, vol. <\/em><\/p>\n
128<\/em>, no. 5, 1997, pp. 1087-1101. DOI: 10.2307\/463485<\/p>\n
Lecker, Robert. “A Country Without a Canon?: Canadian Literature and the<\/p>\n
Esthetics of Idealism”. Mosaic: An Interdisciplinary Critical Journal, vol. <\/em><\/p>\n
26<\/em>, no. 3, 1993, pp. 1-19.<\/p>\n
Maracle, Lee. “I Am Woman – Lee Maracle – A Native Perspective on <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Sociology and Feminism”. Issuu<\/em>, 26 August, 2019. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
www.issuu.com\/cymykamo58102\/docs\/0889740593-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
i_am_woman_by_lee_maracle. Accessed on 12 March, 2021.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Maracle, Lee. \u201cToward a National Literature: A Body of Writing.\u201d <\/span>Across <\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Cultures, Across Borders: Canadian Aboriginal and Native American <\/em><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Literatures, <\/em>edited by Paul Warren Depasquale, et al.<\/span>, Broadview, <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
2010, pp. 77-96. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
McGregor, Hannah, host. “Refuse: CanLit in Ruins”. <\/span>Secret Feminist Agenda<\/em>,<\/span><\/p>\n
season 3, episode 7, Wilfred Laurier University Press, 16 November,<\/p>\n
2018, www.wlupress.wlu.ca\/Scholarly-Podcasting-Open-Peer-<\/p>\n
Review\/Secret-Feminist-Agenda\/Season-3\/Episode-3.7-Refuse-CanLit-in-<\/p>\n
Ruins. Accessed on 12 March, 2021.<\/p>\n
McGregor, Hannah, et al., editors. Refuse: CanLit in Ruins<\/em>. Canada Council<\/p>\n
for the Arts and Ontario Arts Counscil, 2018.<\/p>\n
Sanders, Arnie. “The “Canon” of English Literature”. English 211: English <\/em><\/p>\n
Literature Beowulf to Dryden, Goucher College. <\/em>2012.<\/p>\n
www.faculty.goucher.edu\/eng211\/canon_of_english_literature.htm.<\/p>\n
Accessed on 12 March, 2021.<\/p>\n
Thorkelson, Erika. “Setting the CanLit Canon on Fire”. University Affairs<\/em>, 6 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
March, 2020. www.universityaffairs.ca\/features\/feature-article\/setting-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
the-canlit-canon-on-fire\/. Accessed on 12 March, 2021.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Unreserved. “Lee Maracle Stormed CanLit Stages to Make Sure Her Story <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
Was Heard”. CBC<\/em>, 16 March, 2018. www.cbc.ca\/radio\/unreserved\/how-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
indigenous-authors-are-claiming-space-in-the-canlit-scene-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
1.4573996\/lee-maracle-stormed-canlit-stages-to-make-sure-her-story-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n
was-heard-1.4578124. Accessed on 12 March, 2021.<\/span><\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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