I have a dilemma that I was wondering if anyone could give some insight on. First of all, a bit of background (I know I've mentioned some of this before in previous posts, but for the benefit of those who don't know): I am an enrolled member of the Echota Cherokee tribe, a state-recognized tribe in Alabama (we are direct descendants of the Chickamagua Cherokees, who broke away from the tribe to form their own alliance in southeastern Tennessee/northeastern Alabama, many years prior to the Removal). I write a lot of stories about the Southeastern Native American experience, and most of my protagonists are mixed-bloods dealing with issues of race and identity (again, a situation that is rather unique for us, since many of these descandants are in essence "cut off" and alienated from their Native identity in a region that is predominantly Caucasion, African-American or other racial/ethnic groups).
The problem I've encountered is with my latest novel. I have a character who is a mixed-blood Echota and is very much in love with a white girl (they are a sort of star-crossed "Romeo and Juliet" pair), but the boy is a juvenile delinquint. Mostly this is a result of having fallen into bad company, but nevertheless, he has committed at least one act of murder in his past, and by the end of one partcularly soul-wrenching episode, ends up killing his best friend (who is also Indian) as well.
This ended up being a major source of contention recently at my thesis defense (I just received my MFA in Creative Writing, and a portion of this novel served as my creative thesis). One of my mentors, whose opinion I respect very highly, said that this issue may present a major hurdle to the novel's publication and/or acceptance if it is. The professor who told me this is himself an Asian writer, and an expert on multicultural lit. He said it's going to hurt the book (as in the PC sense) if I present my Native American protagonist as a murderer, even if, granted, he's basically just a scared kid who's been caught in bad circumstances. Reason: He says it harkens back to the stereotype of the Native Americans as bloodthirsty savages, and that these days you have to be very careful about presenting (especially) male minority characters in this light. He says for the characeter to remain sympaethetic, he would have to have much more motivation than what I've portrayed (although here I would somewhat beg to differ. This character has been very much a victim of hatred and prejudice his whole life, which I think does come across clearly over the course of the book, and when he meets the friends who comprise his gang, he is so happy just to have a "family" that he's pretty much willing to go along with whatever it takes to keep his standing with them).
I think that it's hardly realistic that all my Native American characters should be "good," just as it would be unrealistic if they were all "bad." I realize that our people have been unfairly cursed with an undeserving stigma--either the bloodthirsty savage or the noble romantic. In both cases, we are talking extremes, neither of which has anything to do with the truth. Native Americans, like all people, are more complex than that; there is good and bad and every shade of grey in between.
The fact is, I know a lot of succesful Native American writers, such as Sherman Alexie and Adrian C. Louis, who have dealt realistically with issues of violence. (Alexie's "Indian Killer," for example). And it is a well-documented fact that gang violence among our youth, whether on or off the reservation, has become a huge issue. I don't think this is something that I. as a writer, should sugarcoat or ignore just because it isn't "PC."
And it isn't like this is true of every character I write. But after having written my previous novel, whose main protagonist was a very sweet, humble "underdog" kind of character, I felt I wanted a character who would be darker and edgier. In other words, I guess I was going for the "angst" factor.
This really got me to thinking about the whole issue of how minorities and violence are portrayed in fiction. It was suggested that I read Richard Wright's "Native Son," a novel that I did, in fact, read many years ago, to see how this kind of situation was handled by a minority writer then. (In this novel, a young African-American man accidentally kills a white woman). But, frankly, I'm not sure if there's enough correlation between Wright's character and mine to really find this a helpful model. I'm much more interested in how contemporary writers, particularly contemporary Native American writers, have dealt with these issues, especially in regard to the rising violence among our youth and the incidents of Natives perpetuating violence against Natives, which is happening with more and more heartbreaking frequency on the reservations and off.
I've had quite a few beta readers for this novel. Most of them found my character quite likeable and sympathetic as long as they thought he was simply a "punk" thief who had stolen a few cars and spent some time in detention. However, most admittedly found the revelations of the murder to be jarring. It wasn't that they entirely lost symapthy, but did admit it called for a major readjustment of their perception of this character. So I guess I'm caught in a real dilemma. I really wanted to keep the murder in there, but it seems the idea has a lot of odds stacked against it.
Ideas? Suggestions? Comments? Any and all would be appreciated.
The problem I've encountered is with my latest novel. I have a character who is a mixed-blood Echota and is very much in love with a white girl (they are a sort of star-crossed "Romeo and Juliet" pair), but the boy is a juvenile delinquint. Mostly this is a result of having fallen into bad company, but nevertheless, he has committed at least one act of murder in his past, and by the end of one partcularly soul-wrenching episode, ends up killing his best friend (who is also Indian) as well.
This ended up being a major source of contention recently at my thesis defense (I just received my MFA in Creative Writing, and a portion of this novel served as my creative thesis). One of my mentors, whose opinion I respect very highly, said that this issue may present a major hurdle to the novel's publication and/or acceptance if it is. The professor who told me this is himself an Asian writer, and an expert on multicultural lit. He said it's going to hurt the book (as in the PC sense) if I present my Native American protagonist as a murderer, even if, granted, he's basically just a scared kid who's been caught in bad circumstances. Reason: He says it harkens back to the stereotype of the Native Americans as bloodthirsty savages, and that these days you have to be very careful about presenting (especially) male minority characters in this light. He says for the characeter to remain sympaethetic, he would have to have much more motivation than what I've portrayed (although here I would somewhat beg to differ. This character has been very much a victim of hatred and prejudice his whole life, which I think does come across clearly over the course of the book, and when he meets the friends who comprise his gang, he is so happy just to have a "family" that he's pretty much willing to go along with whatever it takes to keep his standing with them).
I think that it's hardly realistic that all my Native American characters should be "good," just as it would be unrealistic if they were all "bad." I realize that our people have been unfairly cursed with an undeserving stigma--either the bloodthirsty savage or the noble romantic. In both cases, we are talking extremes, neither of which has anything to do with the truth. Native Americans, like all people, are more complex than that; there is good and bad and every shade of grey in between.
The fact is, I know a lot of succesful Native American writers, such as Sherman Alexie and Adrian C. Louis, who have dealt realistically with issues of violence. (Alexie's "Indian Killer," for example). And it is a well-documented fact that gang violence among our youth, whether on or off the reservation, has become a huge issue. I don't think this is something that I. as a writer, should sugarcoat or ignore just because it isn't "PC."
And it isn't like this is true of every character I write. But after having written my previous novel, whose main protagonist was a very sweet, humble "underdog" kind of character, I felt I wanted a character who would be darker and edgier. In other words, I guess I was going for the "angst" factor.
This really got me to thinking about the whole issue of how minorities and violence are portrayed in fiction. It was suggested that I read Richard Wright's "Native Son," a novel that I did, in fact, read many years ago, to see how this kind of situation was handled by a minority writer then. (In this novel, a young African-American man accidentally kills a white woman). But, frankly, I'm not sure if there's enough correlation between Wright's character and mine to really find this a helpful model. I'm much more interested in how contemporary writers, particularly contemporary Native American writers, have dealt with these issues, especially in regard to the rising violence among our youth and the incidents of Natives perpetuating violence against Natives, which is happening with more and more heartbreaking frequency on the reservations and off.
I've had quite a few beta readers for this novel. Most of them found my character quite likeable and sympathetic as long as they thought he was simply a "punk" thief who had stolen a few cars and spent some time in detention. However, most admittedly found the revelations of the murder to be jarring. It wasn't that they entirely lost symapthy, but did admit it called for a major readjustment of their perception of this character. So I guess I'm caught in a real dilemma. I really wanted to keep the murder in there, but it seems the idea has a lot of odds stacked against it.
Ideas? Suggestions? Comments? Any and all would be appreciated.
