Assignment #2: Comparative Analysis

Marilyn D. Black
871740

NS 262.3 T2
Professor W. Wheeler
February 25, 2015

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People Of The Plains by Amelia M. Paget and Voices Of The Plains Cree by Edward
Ahenakew deal with writing authentic, descriptive accounts, in distinct styles, about the
lives of the Aboriginal people (referred to as Indian) who inhabited the plains at the turn
of the 19th century. Both authors show that the Aboriginal people had distinct societies,
systems of governance, and unique cultural and spiritual traditions. They also
emphasized that the Aboriginal people were greatly affected due to settlement. Both
were worried about the loss of the knowledge and wisdom of the Elders, and were
determined to write down the oral history so that there was a permanent record. Paget
challenged the negative stereotype of women by showing positive examples throughout
the book, while Ahenakew, minimized their role.
The difference between the two authors is that Paget believed that the Cree way of life
was going to be lost forever while Ahenekew was hopeful for the future. He used his
stories as a way to teach the next generation their true history and as a guide for resilience
and success in the every changing world.
Background
Paget was born in 1867 to a HBC employee at Fort Simpson, a fur-trading post at the
time. She was of part-Aboriginal ancestry, like Ahenekew. She grew up sheltered and
unaware of the true extent of the suffering of the Aboriginal people living outside the
walls of the fort1. She had a European-based education at a ladies college2, while
Ahenakews education was Christian-based3. Paget became fluent in the Cree and
Ojibway languages and was hired by Indian Affairs in 1906 to interview Plains Elders

Amelia M. Paget, People Of The Plains,(Toronto: W. Briggs, 1909), ix.
Ibid, xiv.
3 Edward Ahenekew, Voices of the Plains Cree, (Toronto: McClelland & Stewart), xi.
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with the purpose of recording their stories. She travelled over great distances to record
the first-hand experiences of Elders such as Chief Piapot and Qui-witch as oral tradition
was the primary method of passing on history and included own observations to the
narratives as well. The stories are trusted to be accurate and are confirmed by others
during recitation. For a broader, more authentic view, Paget should have included the
first-hand stories from women.
Pagets time spent with Big Bear during the 1885 Resistance was influential and Scott
claimed that this experience caused her to have a rose-coloured view4. She presented
an idealistic view of life before contact and even referred to the plains people as a model
race that had everything that they needed5. Paget does not include as many stories and
graphic details on warfare, raiding, and death as did Ahenekew. Her feminine style of
writing is clearly sympathetic toward the Crees, without emphasizing their cruel side as
shown through quotes such as, These were times most thrilling, relating to narrow
escapes from the merciless clutches of their enemy, the Blackfoot and other nations, who
were most cruel and powerful adversaries, and who from all accounts made life most
precarious from the Crees, Saulteaux and Assiniboine. 6
Pagets writing reflected her non-Aboriginal upbringing and she did not have the depth of
cultural knowledge of the people as Ahenekew did, as he was raised with the traditions.
She clearly understood key concepts such as; seasonal stories, characters, medicines, the
dream spirit, Pow-wah-kunah, etc.7, but demonstrated a lack of authentic understanding.

Paget, People of the Plains, xxxvii.
Ibid, 2.
6 Ibid, 53.
7 Ibid, 38.
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She factually explains the torture of the men during the Sundance ceremony without truly
explaining why, used the word peculiar often, referred to a medicine man singing
weird songs8, and uses the term superstition for the Northern Lights, while Ahenakew
indicated that Indian belief better applied9. Both authors included the trait of humour in
their writing. Paget wrote about their use of ridiculous words and practical jokes while
Old Keyam told about the night of the practical joke by the youngsters and how
Thunderchilds breech-cloth dropped during the footrace.10
Ahenakew was born in 1885 at the Sandy Lake reserve into a second-generation
Christian family and was related to many renowned Cree leaders including, Ah-tah-kakoop. He grew up valuing the Elders and medicine men as much as the Church
leaders.

He made close connections to non-Indian members of the church and adopted

many of their customs while retaining his Cree identity.

Ahenakew fell desperately ill in 1922 while studying medicine in order to be of more use
to his people. He did not have enough money to properly feed himself and he was too
proud to ask for help. Pride was a typical characteristic of Cree people and he was loathe
to beg so his health and self-esteem suffered. As a result of his malady, he was sent to
recover at Thunderchilds Reserve and there he wrote his stories from listening daily to
Elders such as Chief Thunderbird, Pu-chi-to.11 His goal was to write as the Cree people
understood themselves and the world around them. He witnessed that the younger
generations attended boarding schools and were beginning to move way from the

Ibid, 15.
Ahenakew, Voices of the Plains Cree, 66.
10 Ibid, 42.
11 Ibid, xiii.
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traditional teachings and way of life. He did not have faith in Indian Affairs to act on
behalf of the best interest of the Cree people and wanted the Cree people to take control
of their own lives.
Ahenakew recognized that the contemporary Cree view of life was imposed upon them
and it was his wish that readers would have a true understanding of the Crees without the
bias of his own personal opinion or Christian beliefs.12 This is contrary to Paget, in
which she makes comparisons to Christianity, His help, higher power, blessings.13
Ahenekews book is divided into two points of view beginning with the stories of Chief
Thunderchild, who was a follower of Big Bear. He lived during the same time as Paget,
the late 1800s and his narratives describe the life experiences and belief systems of the
Cree people. The second part is from the semi-autobiographical, fictional Old Keyam
character. The difference when reading the two books is that the characters and events
are much more relatable in Ahenakews than Pagets as the stores are from the firstperson perspective.

Themes. Paget described many events such as sweats, diet, standards of health, but
Ahenakews stories explained the Cree way of thinking for example, why the possessions
were destroyed and dogs killed when a member broke a law. Survival was tenuous and
everyone had to work together.14 He also explained the restlessness of the Plains Cree
how they needed to work together or risk being separate bands.15

Ibid, 9.
Paget, People of the Plains, 3.
14 Ahenekew, Voices of the Plains Cree, 17.
15 Ibid, 59.
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Chief Thunderchild believed that the Crees had to know who they were - their true
history through the purposeful lessons in all of the stories. His first-hand accounts of the
measureless freedom, excitement of the hunts, warfare, and raids were meant to teach and
inspire the younger generation. He gave a broader portrait of the Crees by including their
cruelty, impatience, and vengefulness such as the broken truce.16 He was forthright about
how the Crees contributed to the decimation of the buffalo due to greed.17 His
perspective was meant to show how drastically the lives of their people changed.
Old Keyams stories were filled with philosophy, politics, and contemporary problems as
a result of government policies and laws. Old Keyam wanted the younger generation to
know their history, not as romantic nostalgia, but a realistic recollection in order to
understand the consequences. This perspective is important to include so the next
generation avoids being stuck in the past, helpless, and dependent on others.
Keyam in Cree means I dont care and even though the reader has the initial
perspective that he was an old man that has given up, in fact, he cared very much and
used his stories as a way to give an authentic account of his people as well as suggest
ways to survive while retaining their identity. He represents the people that do care, but
are bewildered and dont know what to do.18 His words appear to be those of Ahenakew,
as he was unable to use himself such as his rage regarding the permit system, referred to
as kindly supervision.19 Both authors were stifled, Paget through marriage and a
patriarchal system and Ahenekew by the Church and government.

Ibid, 32.
Ibid, 37.
18 Ibid, 51.
19 Ibid, 101.
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Gender. The topic of gender and the portrayal of women is a major area of difference
between the books. Paget was married woman, yet strong-willed and made sure to
include frequent examples of the various roles and participation of women throughout her
book, such as preparing the hides20 and helping the husbands during war.21 Her writing
was contrary to the accepted stereotypes of Aboriginal women of the time. She
emphasized they were not drudges22, lascivious, poor housekeepers, she also avoided
writing about sex. Ahenakews writing reflected that he was a bachelor and the
masculine themes were paramount. He referred to women as beautiful and strong, but
they were not central characters and went so far to include a legend of the faithless
woman and portray the woman poorly.23 Like Paget, he emphasizes that women were
not drudges to men and insightfully explains the white perception of Aboriginal
women.24
Warfare and Bravery. Paget wrote about the bravery of the men during war and that they
had no fear of death for they believed that they would go to the Happy Hunting
Grounds.25 Like Ahenakew, she also described the endurance and pain tolerance by
both genders and includes the role of women during warfare. The contrast is that she
does not dwell on the fighting or death and writes briefly about events such as when
Yellow Head was killed.26 Ahenakews stories focused on the concepts of revenge,
loyalty, the excitement of war and raiding, primarily with the Blackfoot. Such stories

Paget, People of the Plains, 22.
Ibid, 27.
22 Ibid, 31.
23 Ahenekew, Voices of the Plains Cree, 43.
24 Ibid, 76.
25 Paget, People of the Plains, 2.
26 Ibid, 54.
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include how Ermine Skins husband got killed during a revenge conflict27 and the life and
death game on the hill as symbols of courage and bravado.28
Scholarly Contributions. Pagets book inspired Edmund Morris whose art reflects the
past leaders as well as Duncan Campbell Scotts poetry. Her writing captured a period of
time as a memento. Ahenakew made suggestions for the people to adapt and thrive in the
future such as; establish a day school on each reserve to engage parents so that people
would stay, counselled his people to work with the government to build their strength to
fight, to vote, etc. He also included passages of the Treaty in his stories to emphasize
importance.
Format. The reader must be mindful that both books were edited by another person and
subject to bias. Pagets book is well organized with indicated topics for each chapter, an
informative introduction, and an index for reference. The concepts are presented in
isolated chapters and told from a third person perspective. Ahenakews book does not
have an index, indicate the major topics, or have chapter headings for Old Keyam, but the
difference is that the concepts are integrated throughout the entire book in great detail to
give the reader a greater understanding through context.
Conclusion
Both authors used their writing to criticize of the effects of government policy on the
Cree people. I believe that Ahenakews book gives a more authentic and detailed recount
of the cultural teachings and traditions while Pagets writing is subtle, factual, and does a

27
28

Ibid, 20.
Ibid, 26.

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commendable job including the perspective of women. Ahenakew knew that change
was inevitable and his book is still relevant as a call-to-action.
Works cited:
Ahenakew, Edward. 1973. Voices of the Plains Cree. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart.
Paget, Amelia. 1909. People of the Plains. Toronto: W. Briggs.