Esther Mbithi

The Aboriginal Woman's Voice in Canadian Literature: Jeannette Armstrong and Beatrice Culleton Mosionier Esther Mbithi

Aboriginal Canadians are the earliest known inhabitants of Canada. They had advanced social systems. Their history and traditions were transmitted orally through clearly defined channels of communication. Oral aboriginal literature is now widely accessible in printed English. In addition, new forms of literature that take advantage of the printed word have emerged among aboriginal Canadians. Fictional writing by aboriginal Canadians is a fairly recent development (1960s) and many of the themes in their writing resemble themes in early African writing. In this work we focus on how aboriginal Canadian writers portray aboriginal characters in their fiction as well as the way they define the relationship between the Aboriginal Canadians and the dominant society, keeping in mind that they have been through the colonial experience recently.