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Indigenous History, Colonialism and Identity in Western Canada

Module description

To engage with Indigenous history in Western Canada it is necessary to understand how colonial myths, stereotypes and terminology are embedded into historical documents, (mis)understandings, and representations, and how these are used and countered by Indigenous peoples. Colonial issues endure and frustrate efforts by Indigenous peoples to represent themselves and be heard over Western imaginings of whom, where and when Indigenous people are. However, this is changing and there are now efforts to work towards Indigenization, decolonization and reconciliation in Canada.

Studying this module will help you to unpick a multitude of historical perspectives on Indigenous history in Western Canada from pre-contact to today. You will consider key events and the influence they had on cross-cultural understandings. You will be introduced to Indigenous histories and will explore how these counter and unsettle contact, colonial, and settler narratives. You will explore how current issues are informed and misinformed by the past and the efforts being made to decolonize representations of Indigenous peoples, histories and cultures today.

This is an optional level three history module. There are no pre-requisites.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The aim of this module is to provide you with a core understanding of the key issues in Indigenous history in Western Canada. You will have the opportunity critically review and engage with current debates in the field. You will acquire competency in a number of transferable skills, including experience in analyzing evidence, working with sources, and cultural awareness. By analyzing key events in Indigenous history you will gain an understanding of how history impacts upon current cross-cultural relations and cultural identity in North America.

You will gain skills in using and analyzing a multitude of sources from archival material and museum exhibitions to film and oral history. The module explores how Indigenous peoples have been (mis)represented throughout history and how First Nations communities currently represent themselves. The module explores how and why people claim and reclaim identities, and how processes such as repatriation, Truth and Reconciliation Commissions, community museums, Indigenous film and literature add to current cross-cultural understandings.

You will consider these issues cross-culturally, exploring different ontologies, and approaches to history and hertiage. Throughout the module you will have the opportunity to considered the theoretical and practical issues of ‘doing Indigenous history’ as a cultural outsider.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate an understanding of the main concepts of Indigeneity, decolonization and reconciliation and the debates surrounding these terms.
• 2. Demonstrate competency in analysis of different First Nations and Settler Canadian cultural understandings in Western Canada
• 3. Reflect critically upon the relationship between Western and Indigenous history and heritage

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Competently use archives, libraries and electronic databases to find information
• 5. Critically evaluate the use of historical evidence
• 6. Contextualize changing perspectives and approaches over time

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 7. Work collaboratively on group exercises
• 8. Work independently on essay assignments
• 9. Demonstrate presentation skills

Syllabus plan

The syllabus will include many of the following topics:

• Culture, History and Sense of Place
• Traditional Life
• Contact
• Trade
• Epidemics
• The Western Frontier
• Colonization
• Treaties and Reservations
• Cultural Genocide and TRC
• Missionaries
• Residential Schools
• Tourism
• Indian Days, Rodeos and Powwows
• Protest and Civil Rights
• Museums, Heritage, and Cultural Centers
• Identity and Self-representation
• Repatriation
• Oral History
• Enduring Stereotypes
• Popular Culture, First Nations on Film, Indigenous Film, TV and/or Literature
• Research Methodologies
• Truth and Reconciliation
• Decolonization
• Doing Indigenous History Today

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Basic reading:

• Ames. M.M. (1992) Cannibal Tours and Glass Boxes: The Anthropology of Museums. Vancouver: UBC press.
• Anderson, M.C. and Robertson, C.L. (2011) Seeing Red. A History of Natives in Canadian Newspapers. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press.
• Bastien, B. (2004) Blackfoot Ways of Knowing. Calgary: University of Calgary Press.
• Berkhofer, R.F. 1978, The White Man's Indian. New York: Vintage Books
• Brown, M.F. (2003) Who Owns Native Culture? London: Harvard University Press.
• Bullchild, P. (1990) The Sun Came Down. The History of the World as My Blackfeet Elders Told It. San Francisco: Harper and Row Publishers.
• Carter, S.2003, Aboriginals People and Colonizers of Western Canada to 1900. Toronto: University of Toronto Press
• Churchill, W. (2004) Kill the Indian, Save the Man. The Genocidal Impact of American Indian Residential Schools. San Francisco: City Lights Books.
• Cooper, K.C. (2008) Spirited Encounters. American Indians Protest Museum Policies and Practices. NewYork: AltaMira Press.
• Deloria Jr., V. (1969) Custer Died for your Sins: An Indian Manifesto. New York: Macmillan.
• Deloria, P.J. 1998, Playing Indian, London: Yale University Press
• Francis, D. 1992, The Imaginary Indian. The Image of the Indian in Canadian Culture. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press
• Francis, D. 1997, National Dreams. Myth, Memory, and Canadian History. Vancouver: Arsenal Pulp Press
• Garroutte, E.M. 2003, Real Indians. Identity and the Survival of Native America. Berkley: University of California Press
• Huhndorf, S.M. 2001, Going Native. Indians in the American Cultural Imagination. London: Cornell University Press
• King, T. 2012, The Inconvenient Indian. A Curious Account of Native People in North America. Anchor Canada
• Mihesuah, D.A. (1998) Natives and Academics: Researching and Writing about American Indians. London: Nebraska University Press.
• Miller, J.R. (2004) Lethal Legacy. Current Native Controversies in Canada. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart Ltd.
• Miller, J.R. Skyscrapers Hide the Heavens. A History of Indian-White Relations in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press
• Peers, L. (2007) Playing Ourselves. Interpreting Native Histories at Historic Reconstructions. New York: AltaMira Press.
• Sleeper-Smith, S. (2009) Contesting Knowledge: Museums and Indigenous Perspectives. London: University of Nebraska Press.
• Tuhiwai Smith, L. (1999) Decolonizing Methodologies; Research and Indigenous Peoples. Dunedin: University of Otago Press.

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE: https://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=2553 
• American Indian Histories and Culture http://www.aihc.amdigital.co.uk.uoelibrary.idm.oclc.org/
• Blackfoot Digital Library http://blackfootdigitallibrary.org/
• Glenbow Museum digital Archives: http://www.glenbow.org/collections/search/findingAids/index.cfm
• National Museum of the American Indian: http://nmai.si.edu/explore/collections/
• First Nations films: http://www.firstnationsfilms.com/
• Aboriginal Peoples Television Network: http://www.aptn.ca/
• Archives Canada: http://www.archivescanada.ca/english/index.html
• Royal BC Archives: https://royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/bc-archives/search-our-collections
• More available on ELE

Indicative learning resources - Other resources

• Courtney Library
• Bartlett Library

Key words search

History, Canada, First Nations, North America, Indigenous