Indigenous Literary Expressions of Matriarchal Worlding as Kinship

Abstract

This article documents my journey into the world of Indigenous women’s literatures, to offer visions of matriarchal worlding as kinship. Selected writings offer Indigenous feminist analyses within the context of the white heteronormative violence that shapes our contemporary world. Indigenous women’s literatures are resonant and offer a felt sense of home and community. As a segue into matriarchal worlding as kinship, I prompt readers to consider the implications of applying feminist analysis to Canadian literature before offering a textual analysis of Lee Maracle’s Ravensong. Specifically, I urge readers to consider the critical lessons that Ravensong offers us about the state of our world today and imagine the altered possibilities of matriarchal worlding. The texts inspire readers to humbly journey with time, interrogate the past that has so powerfully shaped our current realities, and recall the story medicines offered by Maracle as a way to envision just and empowered futures.