O (Des) Empoderamento de Nativo-Americanos em The Tales of Alvin Maker de Orson Scott Card

Autores

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-8026.2021.e71782

Resumo

O objetivo deste artigo é analisar a representação de  nativo- americanos em The Tales of Alvin Maker de Orson Scott Card (1987-2003). A série é uma história alternativa dos Estadus Unidos  no início do século 19, o que permite que Card condene a história colonial do país, particularmente a instituição da escravidão e a situação dos nativo-americanos. No entanto, apesar de sua óbvia simpatia pelos nativo-americanos, Card não consegue evitar todas as armadilhas que aguardam um autor não nativo escrevendo sobre os povos indígenas. O artigo a seguir examina a representação  dos nativo-americanos na série de Card, demonstrando como o autor tanto fortalece seus personagens indígenas quanto minimiza seu empoderamento . A estrutura para a análise proposta é fornecida pelas teorias de Gerald Vizenor sobre a simulação da presença indígena na cultura dominante, a persistência do estereótipo do índio, o conceito de sobrevivência e a possível recuperação da soberania indígena.

Biografia do Autor

Weronika Łaszkiewicz, University of Białystok (Poland)

Weronika Łaszkiewicz, PhD, works at the Faculty of Philology at the University of Białystok (Poland). Her research interests focus on British and American popular literature and culture, particularly on the various aspects of fantasy fiction. She is the author of Fantasy Literature and Christianity (MacFarland 2018) and Exploring Fantasy Literature (Collegium Columbinum 2019).

The aim of this article is to analyze the portrayal of Native Americans in Orson Scott Card’s The Tales of Alvin Maker (1987-2003). The series is an alternative history of America in the early 19th century, which allows Card to condemn the country’s colonial history, particularly the institution of slavery and the plight of Native Americans. Nevertheless, in spite of his obvious sympathy for Native Americans, Card does not manage to avoid all of the traps awaiting a non-Native author writing about Indigenous people. The following article examines the series’ portrayal of Native Americans, demonstrating how the author both empowers his Indigenous characters and undermines their empowerment. The framework for the proposed analysis is provided by Gerald Vizenor’s theories regarding the simulation of Native presence in dominant culture, the persistence of stereotypical indians, the concept of survivance, and the possible retrieval of Indigenous sovereignty.

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Publicado

2021-01-28

Edição

Seção

Contextos literários: gênero, identidade e resistência