First Person Plural

Aboriginal Storytelling and the Ethics of Collaborative Authorship

By Sophie McCall
Categories: Literature & Language Studies, Canadian Literature, Political Science, History, Indigenous History, Literary Criticism, Canadian History, Indigenous Studies, Social Sciences, Anthropology
Publisher: UBC Press
Hardcover : 9780774819794, 268 pages, May 2011
Paperback : 9780774819800, 268 pages, January 2012
Ebook (PDF) : 9780774819817, 268 pages, May 2011
Buy Direct
View Table of Contents

Table of contents

Introduction: Collaboration and Authorship in Told-to Narratives

1 “Where Is the Voice Coming From?”: Appropriations and Subversions of the “Native Voice”

2 Coming to Voice the North: The Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry and the Works of Hugh Brody

3 “There Is a Time Bomb in Canada”: The Legacy of the Oka Crisis

4 “My Story Is a Gift”: The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples and the Politics of Reconciliation

5 “What The Map Cuts Up, the Story Cuts Across”: Translating Oral Traditions and Aboriginal Land Title

6 “I Can Only Sing This Song to Someone Who Understands It”: Community Filmmaking and the Politics of Partial Translation

Conclusion: Collaborative Authorship and Literary Sovereignty

Notes

Works Cited

Index

An innovative, interdisciplinary study of the nature, significance, and impact of “told-to” narratives in debates about Indigenous voice and literary and political sovereignty.

Description

In this innovative exploration, told-to narratives, or collaboratively produced texts by Aboriginal storytellers and (usually) non-Aboriginal writers, are not romanticized as unmediated translations of oral documents, nor are they dismissed as corruptions of original works. Rather, the approach emphasizes the interpenetration of authorship and collaboration. Focused on the 1990s, when debates over voice and representation were particularly explosive, this captivating study examines a range of told-to narratives in conjunction with key political events that have shaped the struggle for Aboriginal rights to reveal how these narratives impact larger debates about Indigenous voice and literary and political sovereignty.

Awards

  • Short-listed, Canada Prize in the Humanities, Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences 2013
  • Short-listed, Gabrielle Roy Prize, Association for Canadian and Quebec Literatures 2012

Reviews

I must begin by saying that this book has had more impact on me than any other scholarly text written by a non-Aboriginal person that I have read in years…A deeply thoughtful, extensively researched text, First Person Plural brings new ways of thinking about collaborations between Aboriginal storytellers and their non-Aboriginal associates…Whenever I open the book, I find myself totally engaged, often entranced, with a point the author is making. Sometimes I want to argue with her and then, as I keep reading, I see how she has nuanced each claim she makes, twisting herself to see from varied perspectives while constantly seeking an ethical stance.

- Celia Haig-Brown, York University

First Person Plural is a wide ranging, nuanced and perceptive book, one that researchers and writers will find extremely helpful in thinking through issues of collaboration. I recommend it very highly.

- Elizabeth Yeoman, Memorial University