One of the family : Metis culture in nineteenth-century northwestern Saskatchewan

Macdougall, Brenda 1969- (Author).

Summary: "In recent years there has been growing interest in identifying the social and cultural attributes that define the Metis as a distinct people. In this study, Brenda Macdougall employs the concept of wahkootowin to trace the emergence of a Metis community in northern Saskatchewan. Wahkootowin, a Cree term, describes how relationships worked and helps to explain how the Metis negotiated with local economic and religious institutions while nurturing a society that emphasized family obligation and responsibility. This innovative exploration of the birth of Metis identity offers a model for future research and discussion."--BOOK JACKET.

Record details

ISBN: 9780774817301 (pbk)
ISBN: 9780774817295 (cloth) :
Physical Description: print
xxii, 335 p. : ill., maps ; 23 cm.
Publisher: Vancouver : UBC Press, 2010.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:

Includes bibliographical references (p. 301-311) and indexes.

Formatted Contents Note:

1. "They are strongly attached to the country of rivers, lakes, and forests" : the social landscapes of the Northwest -- 2. "The bond that connected one human being to another" : social construction of the Metis family -- 3. "To live in the land of my mother" : residency and patronymic connections across the Northwest -- 4. "After a man has tasted of the comforts of married life this living alone comes pretty tough" : family, acculturation, and Roman Catholicism -- 5. "The only men obtainable who know the country and Indians are all married" : family, labour, and the HBC -- 6. "The halfbreeds of this place always did and always will dance" : competition, freemen, and contested spaces -- 7. "I thought it advisable to furnish him" : freemen to free traders in the Northwest fur trade.