This thesis examines the lives of a people, the Metis or the Michifs as they call themselves at St.Laurent, Manitoba. The Metis people were generally referred to as the off-springs of the Native Indian women and of the Europeans during the fur trade era. One hundred and thirty years ago, they enjoyed at Red River a successful economic way of life that was highly integrated to the land and to the environment. The Metis, at the time, were a proud race and called themselves the 'New Nation'. In 1870, after seeing Manitoba become a province within Confederation, their leader Louis Riel, was expelled from his homeland and the Metis gradually became, over the years, a socially and economically marginalized people. The purpose of this thesis is to document the process by which a particular Metis community at St.Laurent, Manitoba, is moving or has moved from being a self-contained community to a condition in which some aspects of their lives appear more generally 'Canadian' than specifically Metis. Due to the processes of modernization and secularization, many Metis find themselves today at a cultural crossroad. They face the choice of remaining Metis or becoming 'Canadian'. Data reveals that there are some social, cultural and economic implications in making such a decision. I will argue the point that it is possible to retain a strong and definitive sense of being Metis while at the same time becoming a Canadian and, presumably, less Metis than formerly was the case. Some findings of this research relate to the constituents of Metisness, both core and surface values. We will follow the process of change these cultural values have undergone within the life-span of the informants. Data shows that some Metis, under economic pressure, made their decision rather quickly as they joined the mainstream of society. Others continue to struggle to retain some aspects of Metisness as they see former cultural ways absorbed by the modern current. In many instances, Metis people are becoming 'Canadian' at the expense of being Metis, that many Metis have assimilated and have become 'Canadian'. As a result, Metis today are not what they were in the past. However, in the process, we encounter many Metis today, who are rediscovering their family origins, their historical traditions and cultural heritage. These people are, in their own ways, socially, culturally and politically reconstructing new expressions of Metisness in today's technological world. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

Ce mémoire veut, de prime abord, porter un regard sur la rue Saint-Laurent qui, depuis ses débuts, joue un rôle fondamental dans le tissu montréalais. Grâce à son visage bigarré et à son hétérogénéité, elle a su marquer l’histoire de la métropole et alimenter l’imaginaire d’un bon nombre d’écrivains. Michel Tremblay demeure un de ceux qui, dans l’ensemble de son oeuvre, explore le plus abondamment les clairs-obscurs et l’étrangeté de ce corridor urbain. Son écriture à la fois crue, marginale et théâtrale, s’inscrit pertinemment dans l’univers de la Main et, plus particulièrement, dans la partie du Redlight où aboutissent et se meuvent ses personnages les plus colorés. Ayant délaissé leur milieu d’origine, ces derniers s’imposent des changements radicaux afin de mieux cadrer avec la nature et les activités de leur terre d’accueil. Ce mémoire visera donc à penser l’« identité trafiquée » des personnages de Tremblay comme condition de leur inscription sur la rue Saint-Laurent. En outre, il sera question de l’esprit théâtral de cette artère qui pousse les travestis et les artistes en tout genre à se donner « en représentation » et à incarner un rôle de composition. Par l’entremise des masques – notamment celui du déguisement, du maquillage et du travestissement, mais aussi celui de la langue qu’ils modulent afin de mieux coller à leur personnage –, ils projettent une identité individuelle instable qui dévoile l’ambiguïté qui les habite. Plus largement, la présente étude s’intéressera à l’ensemble des marginaux qui arpentent la Main et qui cherchent à (re)définir leur identité culturelle, au milieu des cultures américaine et française. Bien qu’elle essaie de se forger une identité propre, cette collectivité peine à se définir sans calquer les modèles dont elle tente de se dissocier. Une telle contradiction évoque à bien des égards le paradoxe auquel se sont heurtées les communautés immigrantes de la rue Saint-Laurent, dont la lente adaptation à la culture nord-américaine s’est faite non sans un difficile constat de pertes et de gains face à la culture d’origine. Il s’agira donc de voir comment ces groupes, en apparence irréconciliables, trouvent dans le même univers un contexte favorable pour mener leur quête identitaire. / The primary objective of this thesis is to examine St. Laurent Street, which has played, since its early stages, a fundamental role in the city of Montreal. Due to its motley face and its heterogeneousness, this street marked the history of the metropolis and fed the imagination of many writers. Michel Tremblay is one who, within his work, explores most abundantly the twilight and the oddness of this urban corridor. His writing, which is considered controversial, raw and theatrical, pertinently frameworks the universe of The Main and, more specifically, the world of the Redlight District where his most colourful characters find themselves. Having left their place of origin, the characters bring about radical changes in order to fit in with the nature and the activities of their new neighborhood. This thesis will therefore aim to think out the « trafficked identity » (identité trafiquée) of Tremblay’s characters as the condition of their belonging on St. Laurent Street. Moreover, it will take a keen interest in the theatrical spirit of this main road, which influences transvestites and artists of all kinds to play a role and embody a made-up persona. Through the use of masks – notably disguises, make-up and cross-dressing, as well as language which they modulate in order to fit with their character –, they project an unstable identity that unveils the ambiguity that lies in them. The present study will also focus on the marginalized individuals who pace The Main as a group of people who look forward to (re)defining their cultural identity, due to the feeling of being stuck between the American and French culture. Although this community tries to build up its own identity, it struggles to define itself without imitating the models from which it attempts to dissociate itself. Such a contradiction evokes the paradox that faced immigrant communities on St. Laurent Street, whose slow adaptation to North-American culture took place with many gains and losses of their culture of origin. It will therefore be interesting to examine how these apparently irreconcilable groups find in the same universe a favorable context to lead their quest for identity.

Ce mémoire veut, de prime abord, porter un regard sur la rue Saint-Laurent qui, depuis ses débuts, joue un rôle fondamental dans le tissu montréalais. Grâce à son visage bigarré et à son hétérogénéité, elle a su marquer l’histoire de la métropole et alimenter l’imaginaire d’un bon nombre d’écrivains. Michel Tremblay demeure un de ceux qui, dans l’ensemble de son oeuvre, explore le plus abondamment les clairs-obscurs et l’étrangeté de ce corridor urbain. Son écriture à la fois crue, marginale et théâtrale, s’inscrit pertinemment dans l’univers de la Main et, plus particulièrement, dans la partie du Redlight où aboutissent et se meuvent ses personnages les plus colorés. Ayant délaissé leur milieu d’origine, ces derniers s’imposent des changements radicaux afin de mieux cadrer avec la nature et les activités de leur terre d’accueil. Ce mémoire visera donc à penser l’« identité trafiquée » des personnages de Tremblay comme condition de leur inscription sur la rue Saint-Laurent. En outre, il sera question de l’esprit théâtral de cette artère qui pousse les travestis et les artistes en tout genre à se donner « en représentation » et à incarner un rôle de composition. Par l’entremise des masques – notamment celui du déguisement, du maquillage et du travestissement, mais aussi celui de la langue qu’ils modulent afin de mieux coller à leur personnage –, ils projettent une identité individuelle instable qui dévoile l’ambiguïté qui les habite. Plus largement, la présente étude s’intéressera à l’ensemble des marginaux qui arpentent la Main et qui cherchent à (re)définir leur identité culturelle, au milieu des cultures américaine et française. Bien qu’elle essaie de se forger une identité propre, cette collectivité peine à se définir sans calquer les modèles dont elle tente de se dissocier. Une telle contradiction évoque à bien des égards le paradoxe auquel se sont heurtées les communautés immigrantes de la rue Saint-Laurent, dont la lente adaptation à la culture nord-américaine s’est faite non sans un difficile constat de pertes et de gains face à la culture d’origine. Il s’agira donc de voir comment ces groupes, en apparence irréconciliables, trouvent dans le même univers un contexte favorable pour mener leur quête identitaire. / The primary objective of this thesis is to examine St. Laurent Street, which has played, since its early stages, a fundamental role in the city of Montreal. Due to its motley face and its heterogeneousness, this street marked the history of the metropolis and fed the imagination of many writers. Michel Tremblay is one who, within his work, explores most abundantly the twilight and the oddness of this urban corridor. His writing, which is considered controversial, raw and theatrical, pertinently frameworks the universe of The Main and, more specifically, the world of the Redlight District where his most colourful characters find themselves. Having left their place of origin, the characters bring about radical changes in order to fit in with the nature and the activities of their new neighborhood. This thesis will therefore aim to think out the « trafficked identity » (identité trafiquée) of Tremblay’s characters as the condition of their belonging on St. Laurent Street. Moreover, it will take a keen interest in the theatrical spirit of this main road, which influences transvestites and artists of all kinds to play a role and embody a made-up persona. Through the use of masks – notably disguises, make-up and cross-dressing, as well as language which they modulate in order to fit with their character –, they project an unstable identity that unveils the ambiguity that lies in them. The present study will also focus on the marginalized individuals who pace The Main as a group of people who look forward to (re)defining their cultural identity, due to the feeling of being stuck between the American and French culture. Although this community tries to build up its own identity, it struggles to define itself without imitating the models from which it attempts to dissociate itself. Such a contradiction evokes the paradox that faced immigrant communities on St. Laurent Street, whose slow adaptation to North-American culture took place with many gains and losses of their culture of origin. It will therefore be interesting to examine how these apparently irreconcilable groups find in the same universe a favorable context to lead their quest for identity.