Page 93 [93]
NATIVE HUMOUR AND IDENTITY CONTESTED THROUGH LITERATURE AND THE ARTS
Nations peoples by “defusing stereotypes and dispelling presumptions” (New,
“They funny”). Thomas King’s The Inconvenient Indian (2012) presents a “curi¬
ous account of Native People in North America,” as the subtitle suggests. The
work challenges the widely accepted version of North American history by
simply presenting the other, the Indigenous side with sufficient humour and
sarcasm. Writer and playwright Tomson Highway’s Laughing with the Tricks¬
ter (2022) offers yet another perspective of Indigenous myth and humour. The
work is a compilation of Massey Lectures! held in five Canadian cities, which
examine the influence of language and religion on peoples lives, and is filled
with “thought-provoking, hilarious and ribald stories” (Gessell, “Laughing with
the Trickster”). Bill Powless, self-taught visual artist, draws and paints scenes
from everyday life using stereotypical images to highlight both the serious and
the funny (Tribal Vision). Arigon Starr from the US is a Creator/Writer/Artist
and member of the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma; she has produced cartoons,
drawings, and artwork for many organizations; her superhero comic book,
Super Indian Volume One was released in April 2012, followed by Super Indi¬
an Volume Two in 2014. Both volumes have found success with the comics
crowd — and with college and university campuses across the United States
and Canada.
A follow-up to Taylor’s Me ... series is Me Tomorrow (2021), which looks to
the future through a myriad of Indigenous voices. The volume contains essays
by Lee Maracle, Drew Hayden Taylor, Romeo Saganash, Dr. Norma Dunning,
Shalan Joudry, Clarance Louie, Tracie Léost, and other well-known Indigenous
writers, educators, and activists. The question of where one thinks Indigenous
peoples should be in ten or twenty years, or even a hundred years, is in focus
and offers perspectives on the seventh generation, ideas on the unity amongst
the tribes, mutual support for each other, the necessity of tackling poverty and
giving the generations to come hope through education.
The Indian as a stereotype is based on generalisations which originate from
distorted white conceptions; these have led to the misinterpretation and mis¬
understanding of Indigenous culture. One of the foremost stereotypes is that
of the silent, stoic, serious Indian, who never laughs. Stephen Leacock, the
foremost literary humourist of the early twentieth century, mentions the Indi¬
ans in his book on humour: “[...] the Indian, probably the least humorous
character recorded in history. He took his pleasure seriously with a tomahawk.
Scientists tell us that humour and laughter had their beginnings in the dawn
of history in the exultation of the savage over his fallen foe” (9). This definition
of the Indigenous people is highly exaggerated and reflects white settler
1 The Massey Lectures is an annual five-part series given in Canada by distinguished writers,
thinkers and scholars who explore important ideas and issues of contemporary interest. Created
in 1961 in honour of Vincent Massey, the former Governor General of Canada, it is widely
regarded as one of the most acclaimed lecture series in the country.
« Ol +