Jeannette Armstrong - Criticism and Influence

Criticism and Influence

In her study of Native literature, Penny Petrone includes Jeannette Armstrong amongst a young generation of university trained Aboriginal authors who contributed purposeful, exciting, and original creative works to Canadian literature during the 1980s (138).

Despite Armstrong’s involvement in the 1980s upsurge of Aboriginal literary activity and her prolific work, in-depth scholarship on her writing principally examines her poetry and, more extensively, her first novel. Petrone, nevertheless, comments on Armstrong’s poetry, describing it as “direct, unequivocal, and assertive, even aggressive” (163).

The scholarship on Slash, however, is more abundant and varied. In a 1989 interview with Hartmut Lutz, Armstrong relates that some feminist scholars question her decision to select a male central character for her novel; however, Armstrong compellingly contends that female strength and male development are portrayed effectively through the perspective of Slash (18). In the same interview, Armstrong notes, “I’ve been criticized by non-Native critics in terms of character development” (qtd in Lutz 15-16). She explains that she could not isolate the character of Slash from his community in order depict his individual nature and still compose the story for her people (Lutz 16). Significantly, and consistent with the view she expresses in “Land Speaking,” Armstrong argues that Slash’s personal growth can be perceived through his relationships with his family and community (Lutz 16).

In her study of Slash, Manina Jones catalogues a number of critical responses to the work and states that many academic articles concerning it relate the difficulties that audiences experience in their attempts to address Armstrong’s novel. Jones also describes Slash as a work that refuses priority to speech or writing, insisting instead on a hybrid status (55). As Jones and the critics to whom she refers demonstrate, Slash is unique in its aesthetic practice and didactic purpose. In Slash, therefore, Armstrong compels audiences to read and consider her text in ways that may be unfamiliar to them. Ultimately, an innovative critical reading approach is essential for the appreciation of her work and to achieve the aims of the Okanagan Indian Curriculum Project.

Armstrong is dedicated to the advancement of literature and the arts among First Nations people and the realization and promotion of the distinct artistic forms of Aboriginal people in the international arts and literary community (Creative 126). Armstrong’s insights as an educator, creative force, and activist are respected by First Nations individuals and international audiences alike.