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Reclaiming symbols and history in multiple zones : experiencing Coast Salish culture and identity through performance at Hiwus Feasthouse

This ethnographic research project examines the re-creation, performance and
dissemination of identity through performance (storytelling, song, and dance) at a tourist site,
Hiwus Feasthouse. In general, this thesis examines how the Salish negotiate meaning and
significance through performance. The overall objective is to explore what Hiwus, as a site
for creating and performing identity, means to the Coast Salish people who work there.
This thesis demonstrates how the Salish at Hiwus have a great deal of agency in terms
of the content of performances, unlike many other tourist sites where the corporation often
controls the program. I suggest that the Salish employees express layers of a "meshed
identity" - local, ethnic-tribal, Canadian, and pan-Indian - at different times throughout the
performances. I also suggest that the First Nations people at Hiwus deconstruct the
"imaginary Indian" via performance and valorize their own re-imagination of history and
identity. I propose that they do this by drawing on Salish epistemology and world-views. In
particular, I demonstrate how Salish understandings of "place" and the use of a "ceremonial
framework" at Hiwus provide the Salish a way of sorting through multiple zones of contact.
This thesis contributes to the anthropological literature on tourism in that it focuses
on First Nations people's agency, views, and perspectives. I also challenge problematic
terms such as authenticity, "staged authenticity," and tradition. The current literature on
tourism lacks a workable theoretical framework for examining the dialogical interactions at
tourist sites. I attempt to deal with this dilemma by drawing on my own ethnographic data,
complemented by the existing ethnographic literature, to examine how the Salish perform
identity and culture at Hiwus.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/12216
Date05 1900
CreatorsScarangella, Linda
Source SetsLibrary and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation
RelationUBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/]

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