Skip to main content

Distributed for University of British Columbia Press

First Person Plural

Aboriginal Storytelling and the Ethics of Collaborative Authorship

Distributed for University of British Columbia Press

First Person Plural

Aboriginal Storytelling and the Ethics of Collaborative Authorship

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.

268 pages | © 2011


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

Be the first to know

Get the latest updates on new releases, special offers, and media highlights when you subscribe to our email lists!

Sign up here for updates about the Press