Always in Indian. Only

Welcome back to the rez everyone! In this new entry we'll be talking about the a fore mentioned themes in the play through which Highway portraits the new native woman.

The first thing we will be dealing with is sex and sexual relationships. If you have read the play, you will have noticed that it is very much physical, in violence or when Philomena shouts at all the other women to “let [her] shit in peace.” (43) (quick note before I forget, the edition of the play I'm using for the quotes is as follows: Highway, Tomson. The Rez Sisters, Fifth House, Markham, On :1988 . All the quotes come from this text) . So sex wasn't going to be an exception.

Sex as well as sexual relationships are portrayed in different ways in different characters.

The first character to be explored will be Marie-Adele. This poor woman, mother of 14, “Imagine. And all from one father.” (21), is dying from ovarian cancer. Yes, as bad as it sounds. She is shown as very devoted woman, both to her children and her husband, to whom she is very close. Her illnes is driving them apart, and Marie-Adele feels emotionally and sexually frustrated, as she reveals in her conversation with Pelajia,

“Marie-Adele: I could be really mad, just raging mad just wanna tear his eyes out with my nails when he walks in the door and my whole body just goes “k-k-k-k” …. he doesn't talk, when something goes wrong with him, he doesn't talk, shuts me out, just disappears. Last night didn't come home. Again, it happened. I couldn't sleep. You feel so ugly. He walks in this morning. Wanted to be alone, he said. The curve of his back, his breath on my neck, “Adele, ki-sa-gee-ee-tin oo-ma,” making love, always in Indian, only. When we still could. I can't even have him inside me anymore. It's still growing there. The cancer. Pelajia, een-pay- seek-see-yan.” (96)

A quick note before we follow, the language they are speaking, apart from English of course, is Cree, and, as I guess you are not very fluent, here are the translations:

“Adele, ki-sa-gee-ee-tin oo-ma” : “Adele, I love you”

“Pelajia, een-pay-seek-see-yan” : “Pelajia, I'm scared to death”

Back to the text, Marie-Adele is complaining about the lose of intimacy with Eugene (her husband) not only sexually, but emotionally, he has closed himself up and refuses to communicate. Still sex is the physical experience of the emotional link between them, and Marie-Adele can't help it but feel frustrated when they are unable to be physically together.

Adele is not the only one dealing with problems regarding sex, Philomena as well has some wounds to heal. In the van, on their trip to Toronto, Philomena tells the story of her baby:

“Philomena: Toronto. Had a good job in Toronto. Yeah. Had to give it all up. Yeah. Cuz mama got sick. Philomena Margaret Moosetail. Real live secretary in the garment district. He'd come in and see my boss. Nice man, I thought. That big, red, fish-tail Caddy. Down Queen Street. He liked me. Treated me like a queen. Loved me. Or I thought he did. I don't know. Got pregnant anyway. Blond, blue-eyed, six foot two. And the way he smelled.

God! His wife walks in on us.

Long silence

He left with her.

Long silence

I don't even know to this day if it was a boy or a girl. I'm getting old. That child would be … 28 … 28 years old. September 8. you know what I'm gonna do with that money if I win? I'm gonna find a lawyer. Maybe I can find that child. Maybe I wouldn't even have to let him … her... know who I am. I just … want to see … who … “ (81)

Philomena was forced to abandon the baby she had with her white lover. A man who, even though, seemed to love her, decided to stay with his wife. This mixes not only sexual relationships but also racial ones. Neither the lover nor Philomena would be allowed to have such relation, still the one who is forces to give up everything, as she herself says, is Philomena. Here she has to fight with being a native and a native woman.

Annie has to face racial issues in her relationship with the Jewish singer of the band Fritz the Katz. While she is trying to talk about it with Emily, she just keeps making fun of everything until they happen to be comparing white and native men,

“Emily: How about Fritz? What's his look like?

Annie: After an awkward pause.

He's Jewish you know.

(...)

Annie: Fritz buys me jeans and things. I'm gonna be one of them Jewish princesses.

Emily: What's wrong with being an Indian princess?

Annie: Aw, these white guys. They're nicer to their women. Not like Indian guys. Screw you, drink all your money, and leave you flat on your ass.

Emily: Yeah, right. Apple Indian Annie. Red on the outside. White on the inside.

Annie: Emily!” (85-86)

Poor Annie feels outraged about Emily's comment of her being white on the inside, still she makes a clear distinction between “Indian guys” and “white guys”. And she doesn't even know how to say that Fritz is not Native like them.

By the end of the book, these two seem to be catching up right where the left it,

“Annie: I'm singing back-up for Fritz weekends. 25 bucks a gig. That's something, eh?

Emily: Katz's whore...

(…)

Annie: I love him, Emily.” (105-106)

These women's sexual encounters are determined by their situation as natives, as Marie-Adele says “Making love, always in Indian. Only.”, Philomena had a white lover, but while she was in the city and wasn't so constricted by the rules regarding them in the reservation, and so happens to Annie, whose daughter lives with Raymond (“ Not Raymond. But Raymond. Like in Bon Bon. He 's French.” Annie Cook's French lessons everyone!), but not in the reserve either.

Well guys, what do you think about this? Do you think they are determined in any case? Let me know in the comments!