The Loons Sparknotes
Through out the story, the loons and their cries symbolize the aboriginal people and their attitudes towards the white settlers and their treatment not only towards native culture but, the stereotypical mentality pressed upon them. These feelings of ‘“despair, the unprootedness, the loss of the land”’ (Stovel 219) where caused by many generations of mistreatment, stereotypical, and racist mentality. The ethnocentric attitudes of the time, are none better portrayed than by the character of Vanessa MacLeod, a white, privileged, educated, stereotyping girl that tries to befriend Piquette Tonnerre, a Métis girl. Just like most people of that time, Vanessa didn’t realize the severity and lacked the understanding of the native’s struggles until she finally grew older, matured, and gained a new perspective on life.
…show more content…
She does this by first noticing the departure of the loons at her family’s old cottage, “the loons have vanished under the pressure of human development, as her father had long ago predicted.” (Smith 363).
This realization helps Vanessa understand that not only Piquette, but also all other Métis people did not having a place of belonging due to the segregation at the time. This awareness of “the destruction both of nature and of aboriginal peoples brought about by white settlement” (Smith 364), shows that the more matured Vanessa “has developed an understanding for the Métis’ complex history and their mistreatment in Canadian culture.” (Rosenthal 229). Laurence allowed Vanessa to break through her “unfounded and destructive preconceived ideas” (Smith 363) but only to a certain extent. Even though Vanessa’s new found insight has allowed her “to understand that although they are the rightful heirs of the place and its ancestral history, the Métis have been alienated and disconnected from their origins and traditions” (Rosenthal 229) in effect, rendering later generations of indigenous people mentally affected by the choices of white
civilization.
The three summer incidents involving Piquette and Vanessa is where we see the relationship between them change and develop. Through these different events, we can analyze Vanessa and see her develop from a young naïve girl to a matured woman. Even though there is maturation occurring, it is tough to determine to what extent did Vanessa actually break through her stereotypical barriers. We first see Vanessa in “The limited, often egocentric aspects of her childhood” (Murray 7) at her family cottage; this is the location Vanessa tries to “assimilate Piquette into the worlds she knows” (Smith 362) by trying to make Piquette participate in activities Vanessa views as fun. Vanessa did not realize that Piquette viewed these attempts as mockery because at her home, she did not have a choice on whether to do them or not; Vanessa is “too immature to understand” (Smith 362). As time progressed and Vanessa’s attempts at assimilating Piquette failed “Vanessa retreats first into the cottage world that she knows” (Smith 362). Vanessa’s mentality as a child could best be described through her description of “Tonneres are actually ‘Indians, or as near as made no difference” (Smith 362), this indicates that, as a young girl, she could not truly recognize who Piquette really was as an individual or what the other Métis people have struggled through.
In the next summer incident, both Vanessa and Piquette are teenagers that unintentionally meet at Regal Café. Even though it has been a few years since they have spoken Vanessa “feels a mixture of shame, guilt, embarrassment, and contempt.” (Smith 362) as Piquette approaches her. Her observation that Piquette “staggers, not now because of her tuberculosis but because she is inebriated”(Rosenthal 228), indicates that she would rather make assumptions about Piquette rather than acknowledge the truth. Then Piquette reveals her marriage to an impressive white man and Vanessa sees a “terrifying hope” (Smith 362) and only views her for who she is when she tries to assimilate. Vanessa, begins to realize the attempts Piquette is making when she states “’I could have only guessed how great her need must have been, that she has been forced to seek the very things she so bitterly rejected’” (Smith 362). This realization shows that she is gaining an understanding of the struggles Piquette has had to endure because of her ethnicity. Piquette’s transformation can best be described in Herb Nabigon’s Medicine Wheel; at the cabin Piquette is in the outer wheel that holds the “dark and anxious way” but by attempting to develop a relationship with her Fiance, this shows that she has moved to the inner wheel of “harmony and peace from within” (Nabigon 58) by attempting relationships and good feelings. This might seem like a good place for Vanessa to change her views towards Piquette but, she declares this hope to be without any ground” (Murray 6) indicating her still limited and stereotypical view.
In the final summer incident, we discover that Piquette and her two children have died in the fire of the old Tonnerre shack. Vanessa, now much older and matured, having heard of the tragic news goes to her old family cottage one day and notices the absence of the loons; it is here that she associates Piquette and the disappearance of the loons, “It seemed to me now that in some unconscious and totally unrecognized way, Piquette might have been the only one, after all, who had heard the crying of the loons. (Smith 363)”. This leads Vanessa to the “understanding and feeling for Piquette’s plight” (Smith 363) and because of this, she shows “growth of her ‘psychological compulsion to question reality”’ (Smith 363). Vanessa’s progression from a young naïve girl to an older mature woman helps her comprehend the struggles that Piquette and the Métis people have endured; but she is still conflicted by “how she felt and how she should have felt” (Murray 7). Vanessa still battles through “regret at the failure of the relationship between herself as a child, and Piquette” (Murray 3) but it is this regret and guilt that leads her to hold on to preconceived ideas. Vanessa’s connection of Aboriginal people and the loons indicates she views the “Aboriginal people as ‘suffering, helpless victims.”’ (Smith 364) rendering her still stereotypical. Even though Vanessa showed maturity and understanding for the Aboriginal people “Laurence reinscribes the racism she has clearly been at pairs to deconstruct throughout the story”. (Stovel 216) when connecting nature with the Aboriginal people.
In the historical opening, some important facts about Métis history are brought to light by an older version of Vanessa. She highlights the glorious events about the Métis history and their pride as a people to illustrate that they were not always “helpless victims” (Smith 364). Vanessa notes that the mentality of the Métis quickly changed after the government had forced them to be silent, and that is when the years of oppression and internalization occurred. This realization of “the harm and alienation started a long way back” (Laurence 271) indicates that Vanessa has gone beyond what she knew after Piquette’s death. Vanessa has broadened her knowledge to not only acknowledging the struggles of the Métis but to question why they happened. Even though attempts are made to reconcile the relationship between the Métis and the white civilization, the reasoning behind them are skewed. In Manawaka, the “changing of the name Diamond Lake to the more tourist-appealing Lake Wapakata” (Laurence 271) is a good indication of the mentality shared by many white people of the time and present. The reasoning behind the name change is to only benefit the white society and is a petty attempt at mending a broken relationship with the Métis. The motivation in behind the opening was to show that if Vanessa, who started out as naïve and stereotypical, can broaden her knowledge and analyze the reasoning in behind the struggles of the Métis and Aboriginal people, so can the rest of white society.
She does this by first noticing the departure of the loons at her family’s old cottage, “the loons have vanished under the pressure of human development, as her father had long ago predicted.” (Smith 363).
This realization helps Vanessa understand that not only Piquette, but also all other Métis people did not having a place of belonging due to the segregation at the time. This awareness of “the destruction both of nature and of aboriginal peoples brought about by white settlement” (Smith 364), shows that the more matured Vanessa “has developed an understanding for the Métis’ complex history and their mistreatment in Canadian culture.” (Rosenthal 229). Laurence allowed Vanessa to break through her “unfounded and destructive preconceived ideas” (Smith 363) but only to a certain extent. Even though Vanessa’s new found insight has allowed her “to understand that although they are the rightful heirs of the place and its ancestral history, the Métis have been alienated and disconnected from their origins and traditions” (Rosenthal 229) in effect, rendering later generations of indigenous people mentally affected by the choices of white
civilization.
The three summer incidents involving Piquette and Vanessa is where we see the relationship between them change and develop. Through these different events, we can analyze Vanessa and see her develop from a young naïve girl to a matured woman. Even though there is maturation occurring, it is tough to determine to what extent did Vanessa actually break through her stereotypical barriers. We first see Vanessa in “The limited, often egocentric aspects of her childhood” (Murray 7) at her family cottage; this is the location Vanessa tries to “assimilate Piquette into the worlds she knows” (Smith 362) by trying to make Piquette participate in activities Vanessa views as fun. Vanessa did not realize that Piquette viewed these attempts as mockery because at her home, she did not have a choice on whether to do them or not; Vanessa is “too immature to understand” (Smith 362). As time progressed and Vanessa’s attempts at assimilating Piquette failed “Vanessa retreats first into the cottage world that she knows” (Smith 362). Vanessa’s mentality as a child could best be described through her description of “Tonneres are actually ‘Indians, or as near as made no difference” (Smith 362), this indicates that, as a young girl, she could not truly recognize who Piquette really was as an individual or what the other Métis people have struggled through.
In the next summer incident, both Vanessa and Piquette are teenagers that unintentionally meet at Regal Café. Even though it has been a few years since they have spoken Vanessa “feels a mixture of shame, guilt, embarrassment, and contempt.” (Smith 362) as Piquette approaches her. Her observation that Piquette “staggers, not now because of her tuberculosis but because she is inebriated”(Rosenthal 228), indicates that she would rather make assumptions about Piquette rather than acknowledge the truth. Then Piquette reveals her marriage to an impressive white man and Vanessa sees a “terrifying hope” (Smith 362) and only views her for who she is when she tries to assimilate. Vanessa, begins to realize the attempts Piquette is making when she states “’I could have only guessed how great her need must have been, that she has been forced to seek the very things she so bitterly rejected’” (Smith 362). This realization shows that she is gaining an understanding of the struggles Piquette has had to endure because of her ethnicity. Piquette’s transformation can best be described in Herb Nabigon’s Medicine Wheel; at the cabin Piquette is in the outer wheel that holds the “dark and anxious way” but by attempting to develop a relationship with her Fiance, this shows that she has moved to the inner wheel of “harmony and peace from within” (Nabigon 58) by attempting relationships and good feelings. This might seem like a good place for Vanessa to change her views towards Piquette but, she declares this hope to be without any ground” (Murray 6) indicating her still limited and stereotypical view.
In the final summer incident, we discover that Piquette and her two children have died in the fire of the old Tonnerre shack. Vanessa, now much older and matured, having heard of the tragic news goes to her old family cottage one day and notices the absence of the loons; it is here that she associates Piquette and the disappearance of the loons, “It seemed to me now that in some unconscious and totally unrecognized way, Piquette might have been the only one, after all, who had heard the crying of the loons. (Smith 363)”. This leads Vanessa to the “understanding and feeling for Piquette’s plight” (Smith 363) and because of this, she shows “growth of her ‘psychological compulsion to question reality”’ (Smith 363). Vanessa’s progression from a young naïve girl to an older mature woman helps her comprehend the struggles that Piquette and the Métis people have endured; but she is still conflicted by “how she felt and how she should have felt” (Murray 7). Vanessa still battles through “regret at the failure of the relationship between herself as a child, and Piquette” (Murray 3) but it is this regret and guilt that leads her to hold on to preconceived ideas. Vanessa’s connection of Aboriginal people and the loons indicates she views the “Aboriginal people as ‘suffering, helpless victims.”’ (Smith 364) rendering her still stereotypical. Even though Vanessa showed maturity and understanding for the Aboriginal people “Laurence reinscribes the racism she has clearly been at pairs to deconstruct throughout the story”. (Stovel 216) when connecting nature with the Aboriginal people.
In the historical opening, some important facts about Métis history are brought to light by an older version of Vanessa. She highlights the glorious events about the Métis history and their pride as a people to illustrate that they were not always “helpless victims” (Smith 364). Vanessa notes that the mentality of the Métis quickly changed after the government had forced them to be silent, and that is when the years of oppression and internalization occurred. This realization of “the harm and alienation started a long way back” (Laurence 271) indicates that Vanessa has gone beyond what she knew after Piquette’s death. Vanessa has broadened her knowledge to not only acknowledging the struggles of the Métis but to question why they happened. Even though attempts are made to reconcile the relationship between the Métis and the white civilization, the reasoning behind them are skewed. In Manawaka, the “changing of the name Diamond Lake to the more tourist-appealing Lake Wapakata” (Laurence 271) is a good indication of the mentality shared by many white people of the time and present. The reasoning behind the name change is to only benefit the white society and is a petty attempt at mending a broken relationship with the Métis. The motivation in behind the opening was to show that if Vanessa, who started out as naïve and stereotypical, can broaden her knowledge and analyze the reasoning in behind the struggles of the Métis and Aboriginal people, so can the rest of white society.