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THE SHIFTING SITES OF IDENTITY NEGOTIATION IN BOYDEN’S THREE Day ROAD From time to time, the Cree protagonists face some sources of frustration, namely authenticity, identification and validation. What actually underlies both narratives is the identity crisis of Indigenous persons in conflict with their surroundings as well as with themselves. There are some concentric circles of identification, Cree/Indian/Canadian/Brit in Three Day Road. The identity of the protagonists fluctuates between these definitions and they especially struggle with the negative definitions others attach to them. Three Day Road tackles the primary early childhood frustrations of the residential school and the bush Indian (“heathen”) versus urban Catholic Indian disparity, and then the army experience. All these perpetuate the basic problem of Indigenous identity and its challenges in modern urban culture in North America. While in the residential school the question is, who can keep any of his or her Indigenous identity despite the cultural genocide practiced by the nuns and authorities?, the “bushed Indian goes to town” situation challenges the extent to which one might wish to and is able to retain her or his tribal heritage. Authenticity and validation are central every time Aunt Niska goes into town in Moose Factory, Canada. Assimilation is an escape option as well as pressure both at the residential school and in town (“So you are an Indian, then? [...] You are pretty short for an Indian, ain’t ya?”'?). As for the army, there seems to be less pressure to assimilate, in fact, even invisibility bothers Elijah for a while: “They ignore us like we are ghosts floating by”.’* Becoming visible, respected and achieving a great reputation as a scout are essential to him. However, he unconsciously decides to enforce the stereotypical Indian image that is traditionally praised for special military skills and attitude. In the army, nobody is really interested in their tribal affiliation, Native ways of life and thinking. The war situation does not allow for more personal attention than acknowledging the fact that the two men are different and perhaps racially still inferior, but certain skills earn respect for them. The impact of this is to underline the prototypical racial divides, but does also, at least for periods of time, release some of the frustration the two Cree fellows had. We can see the same general pattern emerging in all the 20" century wars fought by the US and Canadian armies: the contribution of ethnic minorities’ is temporarily appreciated and even taken as heroic examples for compatriots, however, the fundamental racial divides remain in place during and after the war.” 13 Boyden, Three Day Road, 35. 14 Tbid., 34. 15 See Chapter 14 in Ronald Takaki: Different Mirror and on the particular race relations that Canadian Aboriginal veterans were affected by in, for instance, “Postwar Experiences of Aboriginal Soldiers” at https://www.aadnc-aandc.gc.ca/eng/1414152378639/1414152548341 #chp7 (accessed 6 June 2017). * 313 *
