“That’s My Dinner on Display”: A First Nations Reflection on Museum Culture
The article, “That’s My Dinner on Display”: A First Nations Reflection on Museum Culture, has been penned by Gloria Jean Frank. The author talks about the representation of the First Nations people in the museum that treats them as anthropological specimens.
The article opines that many of the objects that are exhibited in the museum in relation to the First Nations people are not antiquated or defunct. Thus, the cultures of the First Nations that are reflected in the museums require critical evaluation and scrutiny.
The author is herself a First Nations people, and hence has the most apt background for gauging the propriety of representation of the First Nations cultures in the museum. The author explicates her experience of a visit to Royal British Columbia Museum, and opines how the misrepresentation makes people ignorant of reality of the cultures of the First Peoples misconstrue the cultures of the First Nations people.
She indicates that the audience is made to imbibe the incorrect idea about the cultures in context. She aims to inform the readers about the characteristics of the First Nations cultures. Thus, she aims to initiate a debate regarding the propriety of such a practice by any museum.
