Blog 1
In this novel—and in First Nation beliefs and ways of life in reality as well—there are several methods of learning that don’t just stem from the classroom. Indigenous peoples learn from experience (experiential learning) like interaction with others and the land, and their ancestors wisdom though storytelling, and use many methods to do so. Storytelling plays a huge role in learning and preserving the Indigenous cultures, and we see this many times throughout the novel. For example, near the beginning of the novel introduces story with Frenchie’s perception on Miig’s storytelling: “We needed to remember story . . . . [Miig] spoke to us every week. Sometimes story was focused on one area, like the first residential schools . . . . Other times he told a hundred years in one long narrative . . . . But every week we spoke, because it was imperative that we know” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 25). Minerva also told many stories to the girls of the group which the girls really enjoyed and looked forward to. These stories were passed down to Minerva as well from her ancestors: her “’grand’mère’s story, told to [her] and [her] sisters when [they] were turning into women’” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 66). Storytelling teaches “children important lessons about life, relationships and how to behave . . . . brings generations together . . . . [and aids in] the proper growth and development of balanced children” (Health Nexus Santé, 2010, p. 29). However, storytelling isn’t used for teaching life lessons all the time. It can also be used to pass time, or even provide entertainment as “Children need to have learning experiences that are fun, engaging, and challenging” (Health Nexus Santé, 2010, p. 29). Minerva telling the story of Rogarou, as mentioned earlier, is an example of this. Indigenous teachers are considered elders using story, as well as interactions with the land leading to self-discovery: “The storyteller is one who is respected in the community. Sometimes they are parents or grandparents” (Health Nexus Santé, 2010, p. 29). In the novel, the storytellers we see are Miig and Minerva—the two wise adults in the group. Learning can also occur through interaction with the land. The “teacher,” then, is the combination of the land, ancestors’ wisdom, and the individual interacting with the two. The land plays the role of teaching and tradition in many ways. When Frenchie and his family find the Council, he notes the smell of tobacco, cedar, and sweetgrass (Dimaline, 2017, p. 168). These are three of the four sacred medicines that Indigenous peoples use from the land to keep themselves interconnected with the land itself as well as their ancestors and ways of life: Tobacco is used when “seeking advice from our Elders or traditional people, asking for guidance from the Creator or ancestors, or when communicating with the natural world”; Cedar is used to “purify or cleanse the body, mind, emotions, and spirt . . . . [and can] provide protection”; Sweetgrass is used “for ceremonial purposes” (Health Nexus Santé, 2010, pp. 18-19). Another instance where the land teaches is by examining the environment for seasonal clues. Since phones and clocks were non-existent at one point, Indigenous peoples would use the land to determine what time of day it was as well as examine weather/seasonal patterns. Miig suggests that they’re in the month of April due to “the buds on [the] trees” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 93). Overall, the land, ancestors, and animals all play a crucial role in teaching and carrying on traditional knowledge. The “curriculum” for Indigenous peoples, then, is looking at the preservation of their culture, language, and overall their ways of being, knowing, and doing. As language is the most powerful way to be connected to ones culture, we see this preservation when Frenchie is shocked with the information that the girls are learning language with Minerva when Rose uses the term nishin with Frenchie. She later states that she’ll help Frenchie learn some of the words as well. These teachings of language are evidently a strong form of the preservation and connection to their culture.
Blog 2
Family doesn’t necessarily have to be maternal and by blood, but rather the people who are close to you, stick by your side, and respect and accept you no matter what. Family members make sacrifices for each other. Near the beginning of the novel, Frenchie’s blood-related brother, Mitch, sacrifices himself to the Recruiters so that he can save Frenchie: “‘they know someone is up here, just not how many someones”’ Mitch states before he exposes himself out of the treehouse (Dimaline, 2017, p. 3). We also see this sacrificial mindset from Minerva when she stays in the main level of the barn knowing that the Recruiters are on their trail. She ends up getting caught by the Recruiters while the others are safe: “Minerva had moved the ladder sometime in the night, before the Recruiters woke us. Understanding that she’d sacrificed herself and allowed us to remain hidden” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 151). Family is also a bond that will never sever, whether you’re near or far. When Frenchie and his family find the Council, he is also reunited with his dad. Their bond has evidently never been lost: “when I threw myself to the ground and into the circle of his arms I was small again . . . . Everything was okay” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 169). Families also take care of each other. We see a nurturing side of Wab throughout the novel: “Wab made sure [the family] each ate a bowl of luke-warm mush in the cold hour . . . . She spoon-fed Minerva . . . before taking her into the bush to pee and then bundling her back up” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 139). Here Wab cares for her family by ensuring they all eat for energy as well as helping out Minerva as she is weaker and the elder of the group. Frenchie also aids in caring for his family. After Minerva is taken from the barn in the night, Frenchie changes the course of events: “[his] little family looked at [him] with curiosity . . . . [Frenchie then states he’s] going after Minerva” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 153). Frenchie knows that Minerva is a part of his family, and you fight for your family members. You don’t just give up on them. There is a possibility that this drive to safe Minerva in Frenchie stems from the regret or heavy weight that Frenchie carries for not fighting to save Mitch when he was taken by the Recruiters. Men and women both have different roles in a family. The women are typically “Homesteaders” cooking, cleaning, and the men are usually the ones who provide for the family (Dimaline, 2017, p. 43). In the novel, we see the split of the family on hunting day where most of the men go hunting with Miig, and most of the women stay with Minerva where they maintain the camp and even learn some teachings from here like the word nishin (Dimaline, 2017, pp. 38-39, 44). In regard to age, “Babies and children bring teachings of joy, love, and happiness to their families” like the happiness RiRi brought to the group and how much the loss of her affected the group when she was killed; “Youth and young adults bring the teachings of understanding and enthusiasm for life . . . [and] is a time to make choices . . . in search for meaning and clarity” which is evident in Frenchie. He faces many choices throughout the novel: whether or not to shoot the moose, to go after Minerva, to shoot Travis after the loss of RiRi, to run after Rose when she decides to leave the Council’s camp and so on; “Adults bring the teachings of love, hope, and nurturance. They have the responsibility to provide . . . . As role models they make clear the vision for future generations” (Health Nexus Santé, 2010, p. 13). Miig matches this adult description as he is always caring for the group and teaching the importance of their ways through generations like talking about climate change through the years during one of his stories (Dimaline, 2017, p. 87). Finally, “Elders bring the teaching of wisdom and spiritual understanding in their roles as healers and keeps of the teachings and ceremonies” (Health Nexus Santé, 2010, p. 13). Minerva matches this elder role for her use of Cree language in singing and normal speech, and teachings and storytelling including teaching the group the Cree language; her language, in fact, denies the Recruiters access to her marrow as all Minerva has ever dreamed in was Cree (Dimaline, 2017, p. 172). Some rituals in their family include is the sweat lodge where Frenchie’s dad is first introduced, the offering of tobacco to the land when one was to take something from it, and smudging to purify oneself: “the campers made their hands into shallow cups and pulled the air over their heads and faces, making prayers out of ashes and smoke” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 174). Although I may not be able to relate to some of these rituals in my own life, I definitely can relate to the concept that family always has each others’ backs. I know that what ever I choose to do my family will be right behind be supporting me and guiding me along my way.
Blog 3
Wab grew up in not the gentlest of environments. She lived with her mother, who drank too much and who invited men over. Some of these men would sexually assault Wab as a child. Her mother was one with a neglectful parenting style as she didn’t have high expectations for Wab, nor was she emotionally engaged: Wab claims she “was left to feed [herself]” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 82). She eventually became a runner, at first “for the joy of it . . . . [but eventually] did it in trade” as a messenger (Dimaline, 2017, p. 82). Although we see this competence and independence in Wab due to her mother’s neglectful nature, we learn that though this trade, Wab experiences more sexual assault: multiple counts of rape. Looking at where Wab is now, with Frenchie and the family, we can take a look at where her nurturing side stems from. Wab claims that her mother “traded favours for booze since food wasn’t really her priority” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 81). Wab’s interactions with Minerva and the rest of her “found” family challenge her mother’s ways. Wab wants to ensure that everyone eats and can have energy for the hunt and such—something her mother never nurtured Wab with. Wab realizes that her mother’s actions contributed to the unfortunate and traumatic outcomes in her life, and Wab wants to ensure that she doesn’t make that same mistake with her family.
Chi-Boy shows his competence by being the group’s main patrol and scout for only being in his late teens. Frenchie notes “Chi-Boy was the best scout [they] had, probably the best scout anyone had” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 124). He then examines Chi-Boy’s actions and imitates him through the bush. Chi-Boy takes responsibility to offset the Recruiters and deter them away from the group. He is also the first one to go check out any situation or new area which takes a lot of courage and skill so one doesn’t risk the group’s safety.
Frenchie is faced with many moral dilemmas throughout the novel. Near the beginning of the novel, Frenchie takes part in a hunt. They all split their separate ways as “‘It is often necessary to break up a larger group to achieve a goal” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 45). Frenchie found his hunting spot and waited long enough for him to doze off a couple of times, and soon enough a large moose emerges. Frenchie had the perfect shot, but than began to contemplate: “It was like he was a hundred years old . . . . Imagine being here though it all—the wars, the sickness, the earthquakes, the schools—only to come to this?” (Dimaline, 2017, p. 48-49) Frenchie notes how if he were to shoot this moose, that he’s completely capable of, no on would go hungry and Rose would be so proud of him, but shooting the moose would mean that they wouldn’t be able to travel with the meat as it would rot and there was no efficient way to preserve it. He then decides against shooting the moose as he figures it’s just not worth it (Dimaline, 2017, p. 49). When looking at Kohlberg’s stages of moral reasoning, Frenchie would fit into the law and order stage. Frenchie looks to society to see what’s right: if he’s going to waste the meat of his prey, it is seen an unethical towards his culture and ways of life. Even though he would be seen as the hero for providing his family with food, the unethical decision weighs out the heroic one. Another instance where Frenchie is faced with a moral dilemma is when he holds a rifle to Travis after his partner, Lincoln, killed RiRi. We don’t see much reason from Frenchie in this scene. He is, however, heavily influenced by his “strong inner conscience” (Ormond, Saklofske, et al. n/d, p. 75) and doesn’t allow anyone to get in his way. Frenchie isn’t bothered by anyones opinions or reasonings with him as he blends their noise in with the wind, whether it’s Tree’s, or Travis’: “Tree was trying to reason with me. Or maybe it was just the wind . . . . I heard [Travis] whine a little at the end of his plea. But then, maybe it was just the wind” (Dimaline, 2017, pp. 136-137). Frenchie then pulls the trigger. The stage Frenchie was in when looking at this moral dilemma is universal ethical principle. Frenchie follows his “strong inner conscience” and “disobeys laws that violate their own ethical principles” (Ormond, Saklofske, et al. n/d, p. 75). Here we see that Frenchie does violate a law—he kills someone—but continues to abide by his own ethical principles that this man, Travis, turned against his people and the result was that an innocent little girl died. Frenchie sees no justice but to kill Travis, acknowledging that Lincoln is already dead.
Looking at the way Frenchie reacts to these moral dilemmas, it is evident that he had to mature much faster than most children. The choice that Frenchie made to shoot Travis belongs to the universal ethical principle which most people, including adults, do not reach. With his family leaving him, Frenchie had no choice but to navigate this world on his own, guided by his new family with Miig, the twins, Wab, etc. Even after reunited with his dad, Frenchie will continue to abide by his own ethics and march to the beat of his own drum as this is what he was conditioned to as a child.
Resources
Dimaline, C. (2017). The Marrow Thieves. Cormorant Books Inc.
Health Nexus Santé. (2010). A Child Cecomes Strong – Journeying Through Each Stage of the Life Cycle. Best Start. Retrieved December 6, 2022, from https://resources.beststart.org/product/k12a-a-child-becomes-strong-manual/
Ormond, Saklofske, & et al. (n.d.). Personal, Social, and Moral Development. n/. Retrieved 2022, from https://www.dropbox.com/s/stgc3zhj1iai76s/Ormond%2C%20Saklofske%2C%20et%20al%20reading.pdf?dl=0