The Riel Problem

Albert Braz

ISBN 10: 1772127337 / ISBN 13: 9781772127331

Published by University of Alberta Press, CA, 2024

About this Item

Tracing Louis Riel's metamorphosis from traitor to hero, Braz argues that, through his writing, Riel resists his portrayal as both a Canadian patriot and a pan-Indigenous leader. After being hanged for high treason in 1885, the Métis politician, poet, and mystic has emerged as a quintessential Canadian champion. The Riel Problem maps this representational shift by examining a series of cultural and scholarly commemorations of Riel since 1967, from a large-scale opera about his life, through the publication of his extant writings, to statues erected in his honour. Braz also probes how aspects of Riel's life and writing can be problematic for many contemporary Métis artists, scholars, and civic leaders. Analyzing representations of Riel in light of his own writings, the author exposes both the constructedness of the Canadian nation-state and the magnitude of the current historical revisionism when dealing with Riel.

Seller Inventory # LU-9781772127331

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Riel Problem
• Publisher: University of Alberta Press, CA
• Publication Date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1772127337
• ISBN 13: 9781772127331
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New
• Dimensions: 15.24W x 1.91H x 22.86D centimeters 15.24 centimeters width by 1.91 centimeters height by 22.86 centimeters depth
• Weight: 480 grams

About this title

Synopsis

Tracing Louis Riel’s metamorphosis from traitor to hero, Braz argues that, through his writing, Riel resists his portrayal as both a Canadian patriot and a pan-Indigenous leader. After being hanged for high treason in 1885, the Métis politician, poet, and mystic has emerged as a quintessential Canadian champion. The Riel Problem maps this representational shift by examining a series of cultural and scholarly commemorations of Riel since 1967, from a large-scale opera about his life, through the publication of his extant writings, to statues erected in his honour. Braz also probes how aspects of Riel’s life and writing can be problematic for many contemporary Métis artists, scholars, and civic leaders. Analyzing representations of Riel in light of his own writings, the author exposes both the constructedness of the Canadian nation-state and the magnitude of the current historical revisionism when dealing with Riel.

About the Author

Albert Braz is Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature and English at the University of Alberta. He is the author of The False Traitor: Louis Riel in Canadian Culture (2003) and Apostate Englishman: Grey Owl the Writer and the Myths (2015) and the co-editor, with Paul D. Morris, of National Literature in Multinational States (2022).