Post-Oka Kinda Woman

Here she comes strutting down your street.

The Oka crisis Someone out for cruel or unjust treatment. The making of amends for a wrong one has done, by paying money to or otherwise helping those who have been wronged. A rhyme that occurs in a final unstressed syllable is a feminine rhyme.

This Post-Oka woman dont take no shit

Shes done victimization, reparation,

absorb and integrate (people, ideas, or culture) into a wider society or culture.

degradation, assimilation,

The condition or process of degrading or being degraded. Formal decent to a lower or worse state. Treat in an indulgent or overprotective way. A secret understanding between two or more persons to gain something illegally, to defraud another of his or her rights, or to appear as adversaries though in agreement.

devolution, coddled collusion,

the plight of Native Peoples.

A dangerous, difficult, or otherwise unfortunate situation.

Using the same consonant to start two or more words or syllables in a phrase or verse line is alliteration.

The running over of a sentence or phrase from one verse to the next, without terminal punctuation, hence not end-stopped. Such verses can be called run-on lines. This is called enjambement.

An expression that uses two different words spelled identically to deliver two or more meanings at the same time.

Post-Okay woman, shes o.k.

Walk in an ostentatious yet casual manner, typically with exaggerated movements of the hips and shoulders.

She shashay into your suburbia.

The suburbs or their inhabitants viewed collectively. This is another form of alliteration.

Mackenzie way, Riel Cresent belong to her

Roads

like software, microwave ovens,

Easy to access , they belong to her

plastic Christmas trees and lawn chairs.

This is another form of enjambement.

Her daughter wears Reeboks and works out.

Reverted Stereotype

Her sons cook and wash up.

Her grandkids dont sass their Kohkom!

Grandmother

No way.

Emphasized

She drives a Toyota, reads bestsellers,

sweats on weekends, colors her hair,

The woman is drifting away from her native heritage. Does not live on reserve anymore because the Oka crisis affected her.

sings old songs, gather herbs.

Two steps Tuesdays,

Round dance Wednesdays,

Twelve steps when she needs it.

This is another form of enjambement.

Alcoholism , steps to recover

Post-Oka woman struttin her stuff

Not walkin one step behind her man.

she dont take that shit

This verse is referring to a woman being abused by a man and now she is independent and only relies on her self .

Dont need it!

Dont want it.

You want her

then treat her right.

Talk to her of post-modern deconstructivism

Shell say: What took you so long?

A method of critical analysis of philosophical and literary language that emphasizes the internal workings of language and conceptual systems, the relational quality of meaning, and the assumptions implicit in forms of expression.

You wanna discuss Land claims?

The government is always trying to discuss land claims with FNMI communities , that is how the Oka crisis started . The communities are fed up.

Shell tell ya shed rather leave

Her kids with a struggle than a bad settlement.

An official agreement intended to resolve a dispute or conflict.

Indian Government?
The woman does not believe there is an Indian Government, the Indian Government always has to get everything approved by the Government before they do something in the reserve.

show her cold hard cash.

Tell her youve never talked to real live Indian

The tone is very sarcastic.

shell say:

Isnt that special.

Post-Oka woman, shes cheeky.

Impudent or irreverent, typically in an endearing or amusing way.

Shes bold.

Shes cold.

And she dont take no shit!

No shit.

Emphasized

Theme of Poem
The theme of the poem is a cosmopolitan Native woman who moves away from the reserve in order to be more independent. It also challenges Canadians on their view on Oka.

Type Of Poem
This poem is a free verse poem. A free verse poem refrains from using any rhyme or pattern.

Question One
Why are there pauses between certain words?

There are pauses between certain words because Beth Cuthand was trying to emphasize the meaning of them.

Question Two
Why does the poem not have an pattern or rhythm?

The poem does not have pattern or rhythm because the poem is really strong and the meaning of the poem speaks for its self, therefore there does not have to have any pattern.

Question Three
Why does Beth Cuthand repeat struttin throughout the poem?

The word struttin is repeated throughout the poem because it shows that the woman is very independent and proud of who she is.

Question Four
Who is Beth Cuthand describing throughout the poem?

Some of the verses in the poem resemble Beths past, so parts of the poem are personal.

Question Five
Who does the Woman in the poem represent?

The woman represents the community of Oka and the crisis they went through. They had to fight for their own land. The community of Oka fought hard to keep their land and won.

Beth Cuthand
Beth was born in LaRonge, Saskatchewan near the Sandy Lake reserve. She was very close to her father, Stan Cuthand. They used to travel canoe visiting small churches. She said, Taught us how to concentrate. These long canoe trips honed my powers of observation. Her mother was a teacher who gathered materials for underfunded school and Beth Cuthand said, She stimulated our creativity. Also Beth said, Books were always around the house After high school Cuthand attended the university of Regina and the university of Saskatchewan. She worked as a journalist for CBC radio and Native newspapers.

The books really inspired Beth to write because she was always surrounded by books. She was a very concentrated child and could pick up on the smallest details, thats why in her writing she goes very deep into the meaning of things. Now she lives in Merrit, B.C.and she teaches English at the Nicola Valley Institute of technology.

Works Cited
Armstrong, Jeannette C., and Lally Grauer. Native Poetry in Canada: A Contemporary Anthology. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview, 2001. Print. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 13 Jan. 2013. "Glossary." General Editor: Ian Lancashire. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Jan. 2013. <http://rpo.library.utoronto.ca/glossary>. "Oka." Oka. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2013. <http://www.canadahistory.com/old/sections/Eras/pcsinpow er/oka.htm>.