A Historical Look at the Roles of First Nations Women in Canada

Abstract：Since the 1980s， the historical knowledge about the lives of First Nations women in Canadian history has increased， slowly but consistently. Such scholarly passion over the lives of First Nations women in Canada could be seen as an indicator of the significance of this topic. This paper explores the roles of First Nations women in Canadian history through four perspectives―"portrait of strength"， "social position"， "specific role in the fur trade"， and "decreased traditional roles"， so as to present a dynamic view of the roles of First Nations women in Canadian history.

Key words： first nations； women； Canada

Ⅰ.Introduction

Since the 1980s， the historical knowledge about the lives of First Nations women in Canadian history has increased， slowly but consistently. One reason of this growth is the realization of feminist scholars of the need to consider the diverse experiences of women. Such scholarly passion over the lives of First Nations women in Canada could be seen as an indicator of the significance of this topic. This paper explores the roles of First Nations women in Canadian history through four perspectives―"portrait of strength"， "social position"， "specific role in the fur trade"， and "decreased traditional roles"， so as to present a dynamic view of the roles of First Nations women in Canadian history. The four perspectives ultimately operates on three levels： the first―from the surface （"portrait of strength"） to the depth （social position）， the second―from general roles to the specific role in the fur trade， the third―from "before the contact era" to "diminished traditional roles after the contact era".

Ⅱ.Portrait of Strength

There has been many academic efforts that explore the way that First Nations women were sources of strength in their communities， therefore constitutes a portrait of strength for First Nations women. Generally， studies of this sort emphasize how First Nations women found ways to contribute economically to their families and maintain their cultural traditions， even in the face of serious opposition from local authorities and government agents.

In "When You Don't Know the Language， Listen to the Silence： An Historical Overview of Native Indian Women in B.C."， Marjorie Mitchell and Anna Franklin assess the historical literature on the role of First Nations women in British Columbia and find First Nations women to have been a constant source of economic support for their families and communities from the earliest recorded times to the early twentieth century. When labor was scarce they found work in the fish-canning industry， agricultural labor， and domestic service （Mitchell and Franklin 25-26）. During the Depression， the extra income women earned through wage labor provided the mainstay for their families （Mitchell and Franklin 27）. Despite their findings， Mitchell and Franklin refuse to draw conclusions， arguing that empirical evidence gathered through oral histories and interviews could well prove their research wrong， which points to the dilemma of academically generated knowledge. The "silence" in this paper， then， refers to the lack of First Nations female voices in the historical record， as well as to the lack of detailed knowledge and understanding that comes from having such voices available.

Portraits of strength also emerge in "Native Women of the Northern Pacific Coast： An Historical Perspective， 1830-1900". In this paper， Carol Cooper examines how Nishga and Tsimshian women were able to maintain their status and roles through the fur-trade and missions， which have typically been viewed by historians as having a negative impact on First Nations female lives. In the early days， Nishga and Tsimshian women held great power and authority within their societies because of their ability to maintain control over the production and distribution of food， and because of the redistributive nature of their cultures. At important gatherings， such as the potlatch， the contributions of food and furs by the women were acknowledged before other lineages and visiting tribes， thus constituting a highly visible way for them to obtain power and prestige among kin folk and the community （Cooper 92）. Even as the context of their lives changed， First Nations women adapted to their new roles by moving into the workforce as cannery workers， interpreters， freight packers， domestic service， and missionary personnel. As Cooper points out， legal prohibitions placed on the potlatch in 1884 did not diminish their roles and status in Nishga and Tsimshian society. Rather， they "used their earnings to increase their own prestige and that of their lineage by contributing jewelry， blankets， and sums of money to the missions，" suggesting for some First Nations women at least， they moved from one position of strength to another with colonization （Cooper 112）.

Ⅲ.Social Position

Though the portrait of strength acknowledges the effective existence of some， if not all， First Nations women， it remains to be a portrait of the surface regarding the roles of First Nations women. Thus this requires a analysis of the depth―the social position of First Nations women. The debate over the social position of women in tribal and egalitarian societies has been productive and highly controversial. The "complementary but equal" position， held by Briggs， describes egalitarian societies where women enjoy prestige and authority equal to that of men. Briggs argues that "women are valued for themselves and the contributions they make to society. In these societies， women are neither inferior nor superior to men， merely different" （Briggs xviii）.

In her study of the Uktu and Qipi Eskimo families， Jean L. Briggs stresses the interdependence of male and female roles： "a man cannot hunt until his parka is finished， nor can he move his family to spring camp until his wife has finished making the tent" （Briggs 274）. Although Uktu men make decisions about hunting and traveling that affect the community， and direct women's daily activities while the reverse is not the case， Briggs argues that women appreciate the strains placed on men's strength and endurances by the harsh environment. Furthermore， decision-making is valued differently in a society which stresses consensus and restraint. After living with one Uktu family for almost two years， she wrote：

Too late I realized the dignity inherent in the Uktu pattern of authority， in which the woman is obedient to the man. I envied Allaq the extreme satisfaction of knowing that she was appreciated because she did well and docilely what Innutiaq told her to do（Briggs 293）.

It seems， however， that Briggs does not look too deeply into the implications of formal distance between men and women. She notes that "an Uktu man explained that each sex feels freer to talk and laugh when it is alone： men feel that way about women and women feel that way about men"（Briggs 276）. Such sharp divisions may exist because "Eskimos very easily interpret as potentially sexual any friendly exchange between adults of the opposite sex"（Briggs 279）. For Briggs， the fact that women are highly valued almost exclusively as mothers in both Inuit and White societies， is indicative only of "the emotional importance of women in both societies" （Briggs 283）. Briggs' article， "Eskimo Women： Makers of Men" concludes： I see no conscious，

institutionalized conflict between men and women and also―as societies go―relatively little unconscious potential for tension that is specifically directed by one sex toward the other （Briggs 300）.

Thus， Briggs argues that this harmonious relationship exists because of "the clear division between male and female roles" （Briggs 273）， which points to the "complementary but equal" position of First Nations women.

Ⅳ.First Nations Women's Role in the Fur Trade

First Nations women's role in the fur trade is one of the most discussed and researched roles of First Nations women. Sylvia Van Kirk's Many Tender Ties provides valuable information on the role of First Nations women in the fur trade in Canada's Northwest， from1670 to 1870. The author examines the evolving pattern of marriage alliances between the men of the fur trade and their First Nations， mixed blood， and later White wives， in her reconstruction of the social history of fur trade society. Van Kirk suggests that First Nations women actively encouraged the spread of the fur trade， by contracting marriages with fur traders and acting as guides and interpreters， since it was in their interest to secure the iron technology which considerably alleviated their domestic chores. First Nations women used their position as "Women in between" two groups of men to enhance both their social and material positions. Procuring a First Nations wife was very much in the White trader's interest， since his survival often depended on her traditional skills such as trapping or food gathering， while her knowledge of First Nations customs and languages was crucial in mediating trading disputes. First Nations families were also eager to cement trading alliances with the marriage of a daughter to a fur trader.

Although life as a trader's wife offered greater material advantages， First Nations women had to conform to "the trader's patriarchal views on the ordering of home and family" （Van Kirk 7）. Drawn into a patriarchal， European marital structure， First Nations women became increasingly dependent on their male protectors. If a White trader deserted， died， or "turned off" his First Nations wife， she would be welcomed back to her tribe or previous husband. Her mixed-blood granddaughter， isolated from her First Nations kin as a result of her White father's concern for her respectability， was much more vulnerable to the increasing racism of Victorian society.

By uncovering the essential role of First Nations women in the social， cultural and economic life of fur trade society， Van Kirk has dealt a final blow to the myth that the fur trade was an exclusively male concern. The author takes the "active agents" rather than "passive victims" approach to women's history， stressing women's resiliency and resourcefulness in responding to changing conditions. However， Van Kirk does not lose sight of the fact that "despite her important contributions and influence in certain areas， the First Nations woman in fur trade society was at the mercy of a social structure devised primarily to meet the needs of European males" （Van Kirk 88）.

Ⅴ.Decreased Traditional Roles

In contrast to the previous strategies of looking at the roles of First Nations women―from the surface （portrait of strength） to the depth （social position）， and from general roles to the specific role in the fur trade； a third approach taken by scholars has been to document how the traditional roles of First Nations women were altered and diminished through a capitalist mode of production and the imposition of patriarchy. These descriptions generally show a more favorable view of First Nations women before the contact era and serve as vivid examples of the tremendous negative effects that patriarchy has had on all women of the Western world （Carter 53）. At the same time， these studies tend to overlook the subtle forms of resistance engaged by First Nations women at the everyday level which helped to sustain some of their traditional ways.

Recent work by Winona Stevenson follows along this pattern. In "Colonialism and First Nations Women in Canada"， Stevenson traces the process of colonization on First Nations women from the earliest days of contact history to 1951， when the first major changes were made to the Indian Act. She illustrates how federal authorities manipulated First Nations female cultural imagery to justify their subjugation， and describes the process by which Victorian values and ideals were imposed on First Nations women through federal legislation （Stevenson 49）. Within this story of deepening oppression， Stevenson locates numerous examples of resistance. She writes how First Nations women were not only proud and vital members of their communities at the time of contact； but as inter-cultural conflict intensified， First Nations peoples were shuffled onto reserves， it was First Nations women who clung to their traditional ways， primarily because they had the most to lose from establishing patriarchy. However， the divisions that the Indian Act created within their societies eventually exhausted even the strongest women， like the Iroquois Clan Mothers whose "voice and authority"， she claims， were silenced in the early twentieth century （Stevenson 73）.

In Pamela White's PhD Dissertation―"Restructuring the Domestic Sphere - Prairie Indian Women on Reserve： Images， Ideology and State Policy， 1880-1930"， She argues that missionaries， and newcomers to Canada inherited a long tradition of negative imagery of First Nations women that provided them with the peace of mind they needed in order to employ extreme measures to subjugate and civilize the First Nations. Central to this process was the restructuring of the domestic sphere. Successful transformation of the First Nations way of life occurred when women accepted their responsibilities in the home as wives and mothers. They were taught new housekeeping and cooking skills as well as how to manage a "respectable" house on reserve. Considering First Nations women wholly incompetent for motherhood， the state later intervened， sending their children away to residential schools. By the late 1920s， the Department of Indian Affairs was involved in almost every aspect of their lives， even to the point of regulating what type of bread they could make （White 134-38）.

Ⅵ.Conclusion

This paper's exploration of the roles of First Nations women in Canadian history operates on three levels： the first―from the surface （"portrait of strength"） to the depth （social position）， the second―from general roles to the specific role in the fur trade， the third―from "before the contact era" to "diminished traditional roles after the contact era". By adopting this multi-leveled model of thinking about the roles of First Nations women in Canadian history， this paper is able to present a more dynamic and rounded understanding of this topic， rather than depicting the roles of First Nations women as a one-dimension entity or a progressive linear development process.

Works Cited：

[1]Briggs， Jean L. Never in Anger： Portrait of an Eskimo Family. Mass： Harvard University Press， 1972

[2]Briggs， Jean L. "Eskimo Women： Makers of Men，" Many Sisters： Women in Cross-Cultural Perspective. New York： The Free Press， 1974

[3]Carter， Sarah. "First Nations Women of Prairie Canada in the Early Reserve Years， the 1870s to the 1920s： A Preliminary Inquiry，" Women of First Nations： Power， Wisdom， and Strength， Winnipeg： The University of Manitoba Press， 1996

[4]Cooper， Carol. "Native Women of the Northern Pacific Coast： An Historical Perspective， 1830-1900，" Canadian Women： A Reader， Toronto： Harcourt， 1996

[5]Mitchell， Marjorie and Anna Franklin. "When You Don't Know the Language， Listen to the Silence： An Historical Overview of Native Indian Women in B.C.，" Not Just Pin Money， Victoria： Camosum College， 1984

[6]Stevenson， Winona. "Colonialism and First Nations Women in Canada，" Scratching the Surface： Canadian Anti-Racist Feminist Thought， Toronto： Women's Press， 1999

[7]Van Kirk， Sylvia， Many Tender Ties： Woman in Fur Trade Society in Western Canada 1670-1870， Winnipeg： Watson & Dwyer Publishing Ltd.， 1980

[8]White， Pamela Margaret. Restructuring the Domestic Sphere Prairie Indian Women on Reserves： Image， Ideology and State Policy， 1880-1930. McGill University， 1987

作者简介：

李梦辰（1988～）男，安徽铜陵人，四川外国语大学研究生院2011级英语语言文学专业硕士研究生，研究方向：主要英语国家社会文化。