Indigeneism In Eden Robertson's 'Monkey Beach'

This threat to the native family is detrimental to the children who lack the emotional attachment, therefore creating immature adults who are deprived of a sense of direction or values. Apart from emotional dislocation, the rate of physical and sexual abuse among aboriginal Canadians is also high. There have been various stories of addiction that have been stemmed from abuse and neglect among Natives. Researchers claim that the loss of attachment of young people may lead to increase in addictive tendencies. First Nations people are believed to be largest substance-abusing groups in Canada, where there is formal discussion regarding addiction there are references to the high addiction rates in Aboriginal communities. The major difference between the addiction problem for Native Canadian and others is the element of social isolation and systemic discrimination. This has created a divide among Native communities and a decrease in the spirituality that was originally a central source of power in Aboriginal communities. Addiction has been a symptom to many other issues in First Nations communities, most of which come back to segregation and alienation. Today many first nation communities are fighting for basic needs such as clean water, this is evidence of the discrimination and injustices against first nations people that remain an issue. The first step to addressing these concerns is by ending the cycle of abuse

Alcoholism is an issue in many peoples lives. But for Native Americans it has become a very common issues effecting many people. Native Americans also affect more than health, issues like stereotyping and control come into play. Two authors decided to include the effects of alcohol in their works. By showing the affects of alcohol in Native Americans, people will be able to see the difficulties of the disease and try to overcome some of the problems.

Jack Davis’ ‘Honey Spot’ outlines the interaction between the Winalli family and Peggy and the Ranger, and the media article ‘Brisbane Tent Embassy battle goes on as Elder stands up for his rights’ by the National Indigenous Times Online discusses the arrest of an Indigenous elder after practising his culture at the Tent Embassy site in Musgrave Park. There are many common themes discussed throughout both ‘Honey Spot’ and ‘Brisbane Tent Embassy battle goes on as Elder stands up for his sovereign rights.’ Whilst both very different styles of text the themes of stereotype-driven misconceptions, Indigenous cultural practices being frequently frowned on by non-Indigenous Australians and rigid beliefs about environmental protection inhibiting Aboriginal

“Alcohol addiction stunts the spiritual, emotional and mental growth of a person”~Anonymous. Sherman Alexie’s novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, is a book based off the author’s teenage life. The novel is about a poor 14 year old named Junior who faced numerous challenges in his life. Junior has experienced bullying, he was called a traitor for following his dreams, got in a huge fight with his best friend and lost three very important people in his life because of alcohol. Fortunately in the end, Junior got through the pain and lived on but he learned many lessons. One of the lessons Junior learned was that the fall into addiction, in this situation alcohol, leads to a great deal of misery for the individual and those

Although tribes vacillate with regard to the use of alcohol and drugs, substance dependence is one of the principal sources of health problems facing Native Americans. As the graph below shows, there is a disparity in abuse.

In the book Monkey Beach by Eden Robinson, the main character, Lisamarie, has to go through a series of traumatic events. However, these events play a crucial role in understanding the message of the novel. First Nations communities are still struggling with the aftermath of residential schools. This has led to a loss of culture. Lisamarie faces the death of many family members, and sexual assault which help her get in touch with her supernatural side. However, because she has grown up in a Haisla family that doesn’t practice a lot of its culture, she doesn’t know how to accept that part of herself. Several members of Lisamarie’s family attended residential schools which forces her to face intergenerational trauma. The author uses traumatic events that revolve around first nations communities to make the reader aware of the struggles that still affect first nation cultures.

Indigenous people went through a lot from white brutality, alcoholism, the killing and driving off of game, and the expropriation of farmland, but all of these things added together explained the degree of their defeat.

The conflict of the Haisla people's spirituality and modern "white washing" of their culture has a major influence on Eden Robinson's novel Monkey Beach. The protagonist Lisa struggles to understand her spirituality and her family often dismisses any hint of spirituality. Lisa finds herself connected to nature but is does not fully understand why, leaving her to contemplate there meaning or existence by herself. Robinson’s use of allusion and imagery illuminate many key themes and implicit meanings throughout the passage.

Aboriginal women is sexualized, assaulted, and mistreated in today’s society, and the novel portrays this inequity. Lisa’s friend, Erica, was in Terrace, when Lisa witnesses her being harassed by a group of white men. The men were teaching Erica how to “fuck a white man,” when Lisa intervenes. The men call the girls “a squaw, “cunt”, and “bitch” (Robinson 250). The

The environmental and social factors that Pine Ridge residents must deal with only contribute in this epidemic within their community. Cultural influences such as the decline of Native American culture could be a factor within the oppressed members of the Pine Ridge community. In addition, Cultural clashes that still exist between the dominant group and the oppressed group can cause such things as depression and low self-esteem within that cultural society. Jones-Saumty and et al ( ) state in their article Psychological Factors Of Familial Alcoholism in American Indians and Caucasians that "Indians with a familial history of alcoholism reported significantly more of the following drinking behaviors than did the familial Caucasian group: Drinking for mental benefits, obsessive-compulsive drinking, post-drinking guilt, drinking to change mood, loss of control, withdrawal (DTs), and nonalcoholic drug use" (p.786). Many of these reasons for drinking could easily be influenced by the environmental factors that play a part in this serious social issue on the reservation, which would include poverty, unemployment, poor education, and drug addiction. These directly correlate with alcoholism within certain groups or cultures, and this seems to be very evident on Pine Ridge. The reservation has an estimated population of roughly 40,000 and 35% of the

The issue of substance abuse within Indigenous communities is a key contributor for their over-representation in the YJS. For instance, results from the 2002 NATSISS (National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey) has indicated the likelihood of being charged for a criminal offence is 3 in 5 for high-risk alcohol users, in comparison to 1 in 4 for non-consumers (Weatherburn et al. 2006, p8). Moreover, the National Drug Strategy Household Survey has found that IY were more likely than NIY to have high-risk alcohol consumption (Juodo 2008, pp9-10). These findings provide a link for the higher rate of IY in the YJS and the government’s initiatives to implement punitive control on Indigenous communities regarding alcohol

Eden Robinson’s Monkey Beach incorporates words and phrases from the Haisla language in an effort to reflect the protagonist’s culture while also satiating the cultural curiosity of a non-indigenous audience. The incorporation of Haisla is one of the mechanics of the Glorious Northern Gothic novel, as it provides a reformation of traditional Gothic conventions through an Indigenous lens. The Haisla language is presented through the protagonist’s narration and is usually introduced in an instructional tone or story. Italics mark most of the language in the text; however in some instances the words are not italicized or are only implied. It is through this process of marking that the use of Haisla language moves beyond a mode of integrating the protagonist’s culture into the story and provides a critique on Non-Indigenous Canadians’ appetite for Indigenous stories: what language the text contains and what language is omitted defines what parts of the culture Non-Indigenous Canadians have already consumed or are permitted to consume.

38). Thus, in addition to the pain of indigenous dispossession from their land and family, the felt stigma from racism further catalyses emotional disorders in the Indigenous population. As historically alcohol and tobacco were exchange currency for sex and labour, its frequent consumption and soothing effect became a cure for Indigenous pain resulting in 52% Indigenous population smoking tobacco and consuming alcohol that is harmful to their health at twice the percentage of the non-Indigenous population (AIHW, 2007, p. 3). Since tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption are major risk factors to infant mortality, the pertinent negative effects of marginalisation as a product of colonialism is highlighted.

Whitesell, N. R., Beals, J., Crow, C. B., Mitchell, C. M., & Novins, D. K. (2012). Epidemiology and Etiology of Substance Use among American Indians and Alaska Natives: Risk, Protection, and Implications for Prevention. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 38(5), 376–382.

For over 200 years Aborigines have endured a long history of suffering due to the unpropitious effects of internationalism and western colonization; in Europeans attempt for cultural assimilation and taking their land to which has caused catastrophic consequences within individuals and the community as a whole by