What Is Saul's Impact On Residential School Life

Saul was taken to “St. Jeromes Residential School” at around the age of 7. He claims that when he arrived “a pair of nuns scrubbed [him] with stiff-bristled brushes” (p.44) and that “it felt as though they were trying to remove [his] skin” (p.44). Richard Wagamese provides grisly images of innocent young children committing suicide. Saul claims that he saw “a young boy impaled on the tines of a pitchfork that he’d shoved through himself” (p.55) and witnessed “wrists slashed and the cascade of blood on the bathroom floor” (p.55). Students will see how abhorrent the events that occurred at Residential Schools were if this book is taught. This will shed light to past events so that history may not repeat

This signifies that during the game of hockey he blocks his hurt and pain of the physical abuse just as he did at the residential school, making him more resilient. The beatings he incurs at the residential school helps Saul to tolerate physical attacks easier. Finally, living with his past ultimately causes Saul to become more resilient and move on with his life. Saul’s knows that he has to acknowledge his past which is proven when he asserts the following, “I had to backtrack, to revisit vital places from my early life, if I was ever going to understand how to live in the present.” (207).

In the book Broken Circle: The Dark Legacy of Indian Residential Schools, the author discusses his gruesome experiences while attending the Indian Residential School systems. Theodore Fontaine was stripped away from his family at the young age of seven, and sent to a residential school, operated by the Canadian government. Fontaine begins the book by explaining his joyful and culturally rich life as a young Ojibway child. Later, Fontanne was forced to attend Fort Alexander Residential School, where he was punished for displaying any aspect of his indigenous culture. These punishments include insidious forms of abuse: emotional, physical, and sexual. The story of a young, innocent child, experiencing such misery and distresses is an example

The thoughts of adversity like being beaten at residential school and racism he faced when he was playing hockey, all show that residential school gave him a dark memory and Saul was eager to become a stronger person. In the whole novel, Saul has experienced many painful experienced. He was not accepted and was discriminated against by white people. This novel should be required reading for every

Source 2 shows an imaginary building, Reconciliation, under construction with a sign saying that its completion is still unknown. At the very bottom of the building, is a solid brick with the words “2008, Residential Schools Apology” written. This source tells about the reconciliation for the First Nations. Historically, First Nation children were compulsed to attend residential schools. This, though, aims to remove the Indian in the child, since Europeans thought that Indigenous people were less civilized, and therefore it is their responsibility to make them more civilized, according to their ethnocentric views. Because the children did not experience love and nurturing from their parents, and were treated rather harshly by the teachers in

The kidnap of Saul into the residential school system is a product of the superiority complex that exists. The belief that the indigenous people were inferior to the whites is what drove Saul to the school in the first place. Meanwhile, at the school Saul is taught to suppress his culture and values. Saul accompanied with thousands of other young aboriginal children are assimilated into the white culture. The main goal of the school system was to “[try] to remove [their] skin” (Wagamese 44). In this text, Saul compares his first time being bathed at St. Jeromes to

As he said “I felt the old women arm fall away” going through major change of not having a family as he was heartbroken getting captured. This shows his dynamic character was effective from this happening. At the residential school Saul endures abuse which relates to theme abuse leads to addiction which develops an healing process. Saul dynamic character at the residential school overcame him to becoming an addict

Also, Richard in the story openly expresses his hate for being a victim of Canada’s residential school system when he said, “I ascribed all my pain to residential schools and to those responsible. I blamed churches for my alcoholism, loneliness, shame, fear inadequacy, and failures”. This shows that Richard is infuriated with the Christian

During the 19th century the Canadian government established residential schools under the claim that Aboriginal culture is hindering them from becoming functional members of society. It was stated that the children will have a better chance of success once they have been Christianised and assimilated into the mainstream Canadian culture. (CBC, 2014) In the film Education as We See It, some Aboriginals were interviewed about their own experiences in residential schools. When examining the general topic of the film, conflict theory is the best paradigm that will assist in understanding the social implications of residential schools. The film can also be illustrated by many sociological concepts such as agents of socialization, class

The many beatings, suicides and sexual molestations shattered many children’s human spirit and created a sense of life that wasn’t worth living. “When your innocence is stripped from you, when your people are denigrated, when the family you came from is denounced and your tribal ways and rituals are pronounced backward, primitive, savage, you come to see yourself as less than human. That is hell on earth, that sense of unworthiness. That's what they inflicted on us.”(Pg.81) The quote represents how they were stripped from everything they had ever know, such as their language, rituals, traditions and even choice of food. Over a short period of time, the beatings and threats belittled the children and instilled them with continuous fear. When taken all together, the horror of attending this Residential School stripped not only Saul’s, but all the children’s innocence, traditions and identity.

Stereotyping is an ongoing issue in today’s sociality where people are quick to judge something from the outside, and this can be depicted when constable shows the character as Walter as aggressive and angry. In the opening chapters on this novel Walter is seen as a troublesome and misbehaved young boy who gets into trouble, “someone said he’d stolen a car, someone else said he stabbed a kid in the playground, and someone else said he’d been caught dealing drugs. Everyone agreed he was ‘pyscho’ ” (4 Constable). This quote shows that people are associating Walter with doing bad things before they have even him and goes with the stereotype that indigenous people start trouble.

The residential school and other negative influences cause Saul to lose his identity. First of all, at St. Jerome’s they would constantly crush the

Saul had his entire way of life taken away from him when he got taken to St. Jeromes Residential School, and the land helps reconnects him with his Aboriginal culture. During his time at St. Jeromes, Saul seldomly practiced tradition due to it being banned. Although, one time “during some rare unsupervised time, a dozen of [kids] escaped to [...] a

An example of this is in the lines “Of brutal wrong and deeds malign”(Line 7) and “I could tell you of heartbreak, hatred blind,”(Line 5) This depicts the white people as corrupt, ruthless and immoral in their dealings with aboriginal people. The author uses negative judgements to highlight the emotional and physical abuse suffered by the aboriginal people at the hands of the white people at the time of the poem being written. This shows an unethical view of the white people at the time of this poem. Lines 6 and 8 depict the criminal and unlawful behaviour of white people towards the aboriginal people.

The first time was when Saul was a young teenager and just left St. Jerome’s Indian Residential School, he stayed with the Kellys so he could pursue a career in hockey. Saul felt accepted and loved by the Kellys, stating that “Fred and Marth Kelly were good to me . . . and Virgil and I grew close. He was my greatest ally” (114). This relationship shaped Saul for the rest of his life since it was the first familial relationship he had since he lost his family except for his relationship with Father Gustav Leboutilier. Saul had to leave the Kellys and Manitouwadge because he felt his anger take over him and needed to be alone. Saul returned shortly after he discovered he was repressing his memory of the rapes by Father Leboutilier. The Kellys comforted Saul and told him about their own experiences with residential schools, they also encouraged him to try and find forgiveness (208-210). The Kellys had lived a successful and positive life after their time in residential schools and this helped inspire Saul to settle down and try to make a positive impact. The novel is resolved with Saul playing hockey with the Kellys and other inhabitants of Manitouwadge and Saul tells Virgil Kelly that he “always felt most at home here” referring to Manitouwadge (217). The Kellys and Saul are a true family, there are no ulterior motives and no barrier between