Lips' Inking: Cree and Cree-Metis Authors' Writings of the Oral and What They Might Tell Educators

Abstract

In this article the author argues that the varieties of English that Indigenous poets inCanada are bringing to the page indicate their concern to serve Indigenous peoples'purposes rather than worrying first and foremost about following the rules ofstandard Canadian English (SCE). Moreover, their language practice can thus beunderstood as a form of linguistic self-government. The article documents the mixingof Cree, Michif, and English languages in Indigenous communities and reviewsevidence of how teachers are responding to this mixing. It then argues for acceptanceof "Creenglish" and "Michiflish," linguistic hybrids of English and Cree and ofEnglish and Michif, the Metis language, respectively. It does so on the basis ofevidence that Creenglish acts as a stepping stone to language mastery and becauseIndigenous poets in Canada are using these varieties of English in creative andpolitically important ways. After detailing the multiple functions that Creenglish andMichiflish are serving in the poetry, this study considers specific instances of use inthe work of Cree and Cree-Metis writers Louise Halfe/Sky Dancer, Maria Campbell,Gregory Scofield, and Neal McLeod.