I was intrigued by our discussion on cultural authenticity in class on Tuesday as it related to "The Rough Faced Girl" by Rafe Martin and illustrated by David Shannon. There seemed to be little argument that this picture book was not authentic. But then I got to thinking...could it ever be authentic if it was not written by an Algonquin author?
I'm sure this is not going to be a popular opinion, because no one likes being told what they are and are not able to do. But I think there's a lot of truth to the argument that cultural products cannot represent a culture authentically unless they are produced within that culture. Take a simple example: In Schuler's (my local bookstore of choice), there is an African-American literature section. As a white person, I will never be published in that section, even if I wrote a novel with exclusively African-American characters, themes related to the African-American experience, etc. Now, this does not mean that I cannot incorporate African-Americans or elements of the African-American experience in anything I choose to write. However, I cannot claim to speak for them or presume that I understand what it is like to be Black in America today; I don't, and I never will.
So--what do you think? If David Shannon had just done a little more research about how to depict the Algonquin people, he would have succeeded in creating a culturally authentic work? Or is it simply impossible to successfully represent a culture that you are not a part of?
In my opinion, it is impossible to create a culturally authentic work for a culture you are not a part of. Even if David Shannon had conducted more research, it still would have been unfeasible for him to create a truly culturally authentic work. While certain types of research, such as interviews with members of the Algonquin tribe, would certainly have been beneficial in creating an accurate representation of their culture, he is still lacking the key component of firsthand experiences and feelings. Similarly, if I interviewed an African-American about discrimination they have experienced because of their race, I would gain a lot of knowledge on the subject and I could sympathize for them, but I myself have not encountered this and could not fully embrace their feelings. I think authors can create culturally authentic works by conducting thorough research, but the only way to create a 100% culturally authentic work is to be a part of the culture and have firsthand experiences and feelings
ReplyDeleteAnna I really enjoyed your post for numerous reasons. I really enjoyed this book overall it taught a very valuable lesson. This book was a very informing story that our generation of little girls should read, also the illustration was good in my opinion for someone who was just telling a story about the Algonquin people so we should take it with a grain of salt that it cant be 100percent accurate because he is not Algonquin . However I really agree with your opinion about culturally authentic work .I strongly believe that it is simply IMPOSSIBLE for someone who has not gone through or had the same experience as the people they are portraying to write or illustrate a story to accurately give off the impression that they have. I do believe people can try really hard to incorporate the feelings and thoughts of the certain individuals but to be completely authentic is a far stretch. I think even if David Shannon had gained more research on the topic he would still not be any more prepared or informed to create a better story for the simple fact that those are not his experiences just his interpretations.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you in the respect that people probably have a tough time deciding whether culture can be "recreated" through text if the author is not a part of that specific culture. I think if the author and illustrator would have done more research they would have been able to more accurately depict the culture of these Native Americans. If they would have done so I think more of their readers would have thought they successfully completed their mission of writing a cultural story. However, there were some inaccuracies within the book, so I am not sure how I feel about the authenticity of this one. I do believe; however, that someone can write a book about a culture other than their own and it can still be authentic as long as proper research is done.
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