Moon of the Crusted Snow
Introduction
Imagine a society that is dehumanizing as possible. In this concept, citizens’ oppression, loss of individualism, government destruction, and technological control are not speculative. What if everything you had today is lost? The scenario of living in total isolation. In a small Anishinaabe community in Northern Ontario, everything is cut-off. Power goes down, and communication is barred. Moon of the Crusted Snow submerges our expectations. Out of despair comes hope. And as one society disintegrates, another one reincarnates. In this essay, we shall discuss the narrative of a community balancing on the edge of decadence, regression, and the implications of the novel for Canadians and indigenous people.
Survival skills are what sustains life. The skills are essential to provide the basics such as food, water, and shelter. For a community to survive, members must have the same interest and unselfish traits. Unfortunately, survival is usually for the fittest. Evan Whitesky, the young man in the book, is a man of many talents, despite his color and origin. He is a traditional aboriginal intelligent and with excellent hunting skills. On that particular season, the weather collapsed, and the community faces its worst threat. Canadian suppliers have not always been reliable. Thus, forcing the city to become self-reliant. However, as the weather progressively became dangerous. The
was disabled from the rest of the world. The power disrupted from the reserve, and the village is isolated and stripped of its natural resources by the harsh Canadian winter.
The Ojibwe community has to search for new means of survival (Martens 2020). Survival becomes the norm of the order of the day as the hard winters, estranged colds, and power blackout slaps the natives. Nobody seemed to know what’s was going on. However, The chief of the tribal council, called for a meeting informing native about the absence of communication from Hydro (Rice 2018). A visitor arrives at the reserve. Sooner or later, more Canadians arrive Vfrom the south, hence creating panic among the natives. The Canadians have no respect for culture nor laws and language. Therefore, the community disintegrates because there were no signs of assistance or relief.
Upon the arrival of the visitors, things change. The community was in chaos. However, antagonists took charge and manipulated the natives. The influx of Southerners brings about deception and violence. They were hence signifying the First Nations interference with the native communities. There was so much tension as the sick died out of despair. The scarcity of food in the middle of a dead winter also escalated panic among the natives—a picture of people trying to maintain stability. However, through a group of friends and Family, Evan grapples with the decision of restoring order. Evan looked to up to Aileen for wisdom, besides was everyone’s admiration. She taught young women about nature. During meetings, she offered communal prayers. Since survival means are usually for the fittest, in an extreme situation, a dependency is essential. According to Peers, the Ojibwa people have always struggled with cultural changes amidst responses to historical pressure (1994).
Moreover, part of the story facing the indigenous community included murder, drug abuse, suicide, alcoholism, among other things. Thus, portraying how dysfunctional the population was—exposing real cracks dancing of the balance. Despite the crisis, the aboriginals spoke their traditional language, a sign they were striving to keep their culture alive without leaving it behind. The presence of oppression, racism, and discrimination should not be subject to ignorance against traditions among the aboriginals (Stamm and Stamm, 1999).
The indigenous communities face isolation and are usually forced out of their ancestral lands by First Nations, hence forced evictions. Everything vanishes away, language, traditions, and laws. The cultural aspect of fades and the natives keep surviving somehow. Despite communities forced relocations. The indigenous communities have curved for themselves means of survival. Each hardship marked a milestone. The elders acknowledge the fact that they will remain in their ancestral lands without power and radio. They will survive.
The most likely people who remain where they are, are the ones who accept change while following their tradition religiously. In a world where myths are full of criticism, a wake-up call is usually the dawn of fighting for culture or risk losing everything. It’s an action for the nations whose decisions affect the indigenous communities. Therefore contemplates the question of survival. Who is my tribe, my tradition, or instead of my identity?
Stamm, B. H., & Stamm, H. E. (1999). Trauma and loss in Native North America: an ethnocultural perspective. Honoring differences: Cultural issues in the treatment of trauma and loss, 49-75.
Peers, L. (1994). The Ojibwa of Western Canada, 1780 to 1870. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press.
Martens, R. (2020). Empire, Settler Colonialism and Energy Futures: From Jules Verne to Waubgeshig Rice. In American Comparative Literature Association (ACLA) Annual Meeting, Date: 2020/03/19-2020/03/22, Location: Chicago, IL, USA.
Peers, L. (1994). The Ojibwa of Western Canada, 1780 to 1870. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press.
Rice, W. (2018). Moon of the crusted snow: A novel.