Part A – Question 3
Given what we now know about the religious and intellectual foundations of colonialism, what might be some of the characteristics of ‘post-colonial’ thought and do you think that we are there yet?
When thinking about post-colonial thought, it is absolutely necessary that we understand the various attributes of colonial thought in the first place. Colonial thought is best represented by figures like Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who wrote about “The Noble Savage,” and created these inherent intellectual foundations for colonialism (Rousseau 20). These perspectives, in which peoples from less developed and Westernized civilizations were patronizingly referred to as ‘noble,’ while still seeing fit to subjugate them out of some presumptuous sense of superiority, form the basis of colonial thought. To that end, post-colonial thought is based around discourses that show marginalized populations such as these attempting to recover from these situations, and/or acknowledging the role of colonialism in this subjugation of other cultures by an industrial body.
Some of the characteristics of post-colonial thought include a highly reflexive and reflective look at the institution of imperialism and colonialism throughout history, which is certainly present in much of Aboriginal Canadian cultural and historical scholarship. Things such as the disappearance of the buffalo – issues that would not be given much thought during the 1800s – are given new weight and importance in postcolonial thought, not just because of the environmental effects of white hunting of buffalo, but of the cultural importance of the buffalo in Aboriginal culture (Memmi 100). Furthermore, these same discourses also discuss the issue of the Aboriginal’s relationship with the buffalo and whether or not that actually constituted a modern idea of environmentalism (Memmi 98). These modes of thought are highly commensurate with the principles of postcolonialism, as they offer a solemn exploration of the damage that colonialism has done to cultures and lands throughout the centuries – Aboriginal Canada included. Many writers and scholars write about Aboriginal experiences during the 1700s and 1800s in tragic terms, as native peoples had little inkling of the intense damage that colonialism would do to their people, culture and way of life (Johnston 69).
While I believe that post-colonial thought and discourses are already in full force, this does not necessarily mean we have achieved a post-colonial society. To this day, there remain cultures that are subjugated, even implicitly, by the colonial forces of Westernization and industrialization. Even marginalized populations become jaded by their own marginalization, as colonial populations begin to appropriate their culture as they feel it is more acceptable now due to the beginnings of post-colonial thought (Johnston 72). In these ways and more, it is difficult to truly say whether or not a modern world, one which largely acknowledges the specter of colonialism, has fully reached the state of a post-colonial society, particularly when these issues have been replaced largely by the complexities of globalization. Where once there was the British Navy sailing to a new land and forging their destiny by establishing a colony, the focus has now shifted to more subtle imperialism by companies setting up large interests overseas and turning marginalized populations into labor forces. In this way, the problems have changed slightly, but have not truly gone away – to that end, a truly post-colonial society may still be far in the future.
Part B – Question 1
Describe the key ideas embodied in both the Royal Proclamation of 1763 and the Treaty of Niagara of 1764.
The Royal Proclamation of 1763 and the Treaty of Niagara of 1764 are two of the most important treaties to consider when looking at the history of aboriginal/colonial relations in Canada. The Royal Proclamation of 1763, for instance, came about as a result of the French being defeated in Quebec by the British – the goal of this was to help the English government establish relations between themselves and First Nations (Memmi 112). This was hugely important for many reasons, not the least of which including the ability for First Nations tribes to actually own their lands, and to declare that these populations would be undisturbed. This provided an unprecedented level of care and consideration for First Nations peoples, in a way previously unheard of by the British government of all things - one of the chief colonizers of the world.
Yet another reason that the Royal Proclamation was important was the active role that First Nations peoples had in crafting the document; while the English government usually takes credit for the document, First Nations peoples were able to assert their own demands and choices when creating the Proclamation itself (Memmi 112-113). Instead of this being a concession to a beleaguered population out of pity, the Proclamation as a text reads as two corresponding governments approaching each other on equal footing – something which is remarkable considering the very imbalanced nature of colonialism itself. The creation of the Proclamation provided a rare opportunity for First Nations peoples to assert themselves and their destiny in a way that their colonizers would (and, largely, did) respect.
The Treaty of Niagara in 1764, meanwhile, extended the tenets of the Royal Proclamation and truly made the intent of the Proclamation itself clear. It also served to officially ratify the Royal Proclamation, which is perhaps one of Canada’s original governmental constitutions. The Treaty itself helped to solidify many of the attributes of the Royal Proclamation which were previously vague and unclear. Furthermore, this helped to establish and contribute to a number of treaties between the British and Aboriginal peoples, which allowed the Royal Proclamation to become the baseline for British-Aboriginal relations. At least until the War of 1812, the Royal Proclamation and the Treaty of Niagara combined to create a much more amicable relationship than could be expected between indigenous peoples of Canada and the British government (Memmi 113); by acknowledging the sovereignty of the First Nations, the British allowed a relatively smooth trading and settlement relationship to be established, in which aboriginal peoples were allowed to have a say in their destiny.
While the War of 1812 led the British to reconsider their Indian policy to start making them more “civilized,” the Proclamation and the Niagara Treaty permitted a brief period of cooperation and amicability between the First Nations and their British colonizers (Memmi 113). Sovereignty is the primary idea behind both of these treaties, as they represented a rare attempt by the English to provide the First Nations the ability to assert their own destiny and have a say in the settlement of their neighboring lands by non-natives. This is a rare blip of civility and cooperation shown in the face of an otherwise hostile and oppressive relationship found between colonizer and colonized.
Works Cited
Aristotle. (1999). The state exists by nature. In J. Wolff, & M. Rosen (Eds.), Political Thought
(pp. 10-11). Oxford, GB: Oxford University Press.
Johnston, B. (2004). The Wampun Belt Tells Us. In Our Story: Aboriginal Voices on Canada’s
Past (pp. 69-101). Toronto, ON: Doubleday Canada.
Maracle, L. (2004). Goodbye Snauq. In Our Story: Aboriginal Voices on Canada’s
Past (pp. 201-219). Toronto, ON: Doubleday Canada.
Memmi, A. (1965). The colonizer and the colonized. (pp. xxi-153).
Pearen, S.J. (2012). Four voices: the great Manitoulin Island Treaty of 1862. Ottawa, ON: S.J.
Pearen.
