so no, if you're some white kid hearing crying in the forests of california you're not being "lured into the Lipsitz, writing in the the 1990s, argued that cultural appreciation becomes cultural appropriation "when an element of culture is adopted from a marginalized group without respect for its . Lots of stories have aped Native American folklore before her, including some of mine. The people who get offended over it, on behalf of someone else, are pathetically absurd. After thinking about it some more, I understand that its a kind of It was okay for these kids to pretend to be Indians but not for these kids to actually be Indians thing but I saw someone claim that it was contributing to colonisation and the death of death of their culture and that felt a bit strong. [56], Various characters inspired by the legend, or named for it, appear in Role-playing video games, such as 2018's Fallout 76 by Bethesda Game Studios, where wendigos are featured as one of the cryptid enemies found in the area of Appalachia, mutated from people who consumed human flesh in isolation. But as far as cultural appropriation and the Wendigo goes, dont you daredont you DAREtry to take our monsters away from us, PC wankers! Dont look at it! The concept of cultural appropriation began well enough, but just like everything else woke culture political correctness, it's gone way too far. Rowling tries (and fails) to mitigate these implications by saying "although it is generally held to be a mark of the very greatest witches and wizards that they have also been able to produce wandless magic of a very high quality." Cultural appropriation is a bullshit term made up by people who feel some bizarre psychological need to make up reasons to punish themselves. They went back again to see if he was dead. I think it's okay because you're not trying to rewrite actual history or actual legend. He ultimately was granted a pardon but died three days later in jail before receiving the news of this pardon. I have always felt a distinct emotional connection to it, in fact. It has become something else altogether. Lurking in the deep woods of the Northern United States and Southern Canada lies a mysterious and fearsome Native American monster, the Wendigo. The line between what differentiates cultural appropriation from cultural appreciation can be razor-thin, not to mention highly . To fully understand its consequences, though, we need to make sure we have a working definition of culture itself. Draw/write what you want, I say. Privacy Policy. The cannibalistic forest creature is known for allegedly . A nice summary is found here: The concept of cultural appropriation emerged in academia in the late 1970s and 1980s as part of the scholarly critique of colonialism. And unfortunately for them, this isn't the first time. It's a really cool beast that I personally would like to see more in fiction. [12] Although descriptions can vary somewhat, common to all these cultures is the view that the wendigo is a malevolent, cannibalistic, supernatural being. Copyright 2022 Facing History & Ourselves. How stupid to think otherwise. I would agree, only I am more likely to not care much even what an Algonquin cares about my monster character. If so, what did you think about it? Wendigo) from its cultural context and its movement by non-Indigenous creators (a large majority being white) into a space of the horror genre that displays negative or antagonistic qualities. Shock factor aside, it's especially eye-catching in that it isn't necessarily a result of being desperate for food. I'm not skilled enough to draw these (")> lolz. The Witherell House and the Cult of Weird, Movie Review: BIRDS OF PREY (And the Fantabulous Inclusion of Victor Zsasz and a Hyena). There's too much variety of opinion on the question to obtain a consensus. Is it Cultural Appropriation if I have a Wendigo character. LOL. Cultural appropriation definition, the adoption, usually without acknowledgment, of cultural identity markers from subcultures or minority communities into mainstream culture by people with a relatively privileged status. I agree with some of it to a point, but disagree with most of it. BTW, I love rainbow farting unicorns! Dollightful's Wendigo Doll - Cultural Appreciation or Appropriation? Learn how your comment data is processed. The beautiful maang tikka, or hair accessory falling down the part in the middle of the hair, marks a . Windigo is a malevolent manitou or spirit whose insatiable appetite for human flesh can never be satisfied. My tongue and my brain do not speak the right language. These things feel formulaic, quantitative, mathematicbalancing equations and subtraction. What I do think is not so great was it could have been something that was corrected for the films, where they do have access to people and the internet was more developed in the mid 2000s. Most sensible thing said ever. The heroes of books I read, movies I watched, and games I played almost exclusively looked like me when I was growing up, people I could easily identify with. White authors should be able to write about non-white people. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. The name comes from the animal's reported habit of attacking and drinking the blood of livestock, especially goats. Magazine with fellow environmental thought leaders, LaDuke said: Theres this conflict between the cannibals and Mother Earth, and its going on everywhere. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. His first novel, THE CONFESSIONS OF SAINT CHRISTOPHER: WEREWOLF, is available for purchase at https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/734763 In my blind quest to represent everyone, all I did was reinforce the problem. Blackwood's work has influenced many of the subsequent portrayals in mainstream horror fiction,[42][43] such as August Derleth's "The Thing that Walked on the Wind" and "Ithaqua" (1933 and 1941),[41] which in turn inspired the character in Stephen King's novel Pet Sematary,[42] where it is a personification of evil, an ugly grinning creature with yellow-grey eyes, ears replaced by ram's horns, white vapor coming from its nostrils, and a pointed, decaying yellow tongue. I have to look! It only becomes cultural appropriation when an element of culture is adopted from a marginalized group without respect for its cultural meaning or significance or with the purpose of exploiting the culture Contents 1 History 2 Gallery 3 Trivia 4 Navigation History The windigo, however, continues to seek revenge for this attempted scholarly execution by periodically duping unsuspecting passers-by, like psychiatrists, into believing that windigo psychosis not only exists but that a psychiatrist could conceivably encounter a patient suffering from this disorder in his or her practice today! New replies are no longer allowed. Myeesquatis was holding the other leg and we were praying. People can appreciate and draw as many wendigo and other scary monsters as they like, it's all entirely fictional and doesn't hurt anyone. Hah hah! I mean yeah I see what your saying, personally I do research on what its about even if I don't use it in it's entirety. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. The Windigo also has the power to turn humans into cannibals who suffer the same . [47], Other creatures based on the legend, or named for it, appear in various films and television shows, including Dark Was the Night, Ravenous , The Lone Ranger (2013),[48] and the 2021 film Antlers by Scott Cooper, where the wendigo is portrayed as a deer-like creature with a glowing heart that moves from person to person with a never ending hunger. To Helheimr with it! Creative freedom is a beautiful luxury too many do not understand; it wasn't but a hundred years ago when art was said to have an objective hierarchy, and that was how it was for thousands of years. Powered by Discourse, best viewed with JavaScript enabled. Indigenous peoples have seen culturally . I am so offended! I think every idea can be taken to an extreme and distorted to the point where it is ridiculous. Further, cultural appropriation often occurs as the backwash of colonization, and contributes to widening existing divisions and perpetuating patterns of historic dispossession and oppression. It sounds like you did research which is more that J. K. Rowling so I think yes? Cookie Notice [33], The frequency of Wendigo psychosis cases decreased sharply in the 20th century as Boreal Algonquian people came into greater and greater contact with European ideologies and more sedentary, less rural, lifestyles. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. In addition to denoting a cannibalistic monster from certain traditional folklore, some Native Americans also understand the wendigo conceptually. When I got over my initial bout of self-defensiveness, I realized I was totally wrong. And you know what? The wendigo is seen as the embodiment of gluttony, greed, and excess: never satisfied after killing and consuming one person, they are constantly searching for new victims. [10], The Wechuge is a similar being that appears in the legends of the Athabaskan people of the Northwest Pacific Coast. Posted By : / actual instructions in flowcharting are represented in /; Under :nose exercise before and afternose exercise before and after The horror film Antlers adopts an old monster for its story, which serves as both a benefit and a hindrance. Key elements of culture include: language art,. But Native Americans shouldn't be a "niche," and neither should women, LGBT people, or people of color. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Some of this critique was rightly directed at literal cultural theft . I think people just need to chill out, no mater what their religion and culture is. It will survive on it's own. [42] In an early short story by Thomas Pynchon, "Mortality and Mercy in Vienna" (first published in 1959), the plot centers around a character developing Wendigo syndrome and going on a killing spree. 9 Neil Jamieson-Williams Science Fiction Writer (part-time/now full-time) at Self-Employment (1977-present) Author has 1.7K answers and 1.1M answer views Updated 6 mo Ah, another Mike Wilson question Topics: They are seen as malevolent, cannibalistic, supernatural beings of great spiritual power . Cultural appropriation consists of borrowing something from another culture in mockery or thoughtless misuse. My basic rule is simple: be respectful. Native Americans, Our headquarters are located at: 89 South Street, Suite 401, Boston, MA 02111. Here's some links:Website - https://thesierramistify.wixsite.com/thesierramistifyEtsy - https://www.etsy.com/shop/thesierramistify?ref=simple-shop-header-name\u0026listing_id=736195213Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thesierramistify/Art Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thesierramistify.art/- Music used in this video -Prime Beatz - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkG3r3-ODOw Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. Basil H. Johnston, an Ojibwe teacher and scholar from Ontario, gives a description of a wendigo: The Wendigo was gaunt to the point of emaciation, its desiccated skin pulled tightly over its bones. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Don't miss a beat. We have to stop guarding cultures and subcultures in efforts to preserve them.. to tell a new tale. You're absolutively spot on! I would not care much about what a statistically likely personally unrelated "woke" thinks about what Algonquin descendants may think about it, but only what Algonquin descendants. One day they came to an Indian village and the Windigo sent the boy to the Indian village to get some things for him to eat. I am ashamed I watched all the movies. Historically, deciding exactly what culture is hasn't been easy. And they are worth considering including in ones classroom teaching. Dressing up as a cultural stereotype is never, ever OK. Cady Heron once remarked that, "in the real world, Halloween is when kids . hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(443401, 'c61f3219-a9f3-4b0c-95ea-f614a80c184b', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); Pictured above: A portion of the poster for the film Antlers (Fox Searchlight, 2021). Strictly speaking, cultural appropriation is the adoption of some element of another culture -- food, language, practices, fashion, etc. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. J.K. Rowling, author of the absurdly-popular Harry Potter series (of which I'm a massive fan), recently waded into controversy with her four-part "Magic in North America" series, which outlines the Potterverse's American history. When you comment on, Asian American and Pacific Islander History, Race and Membership in American History: Eugenics. The protection of minorities from the materialization of the majority's different thoughts is an asset of democratic constitutionalism. But if they actually did, I would pick another monster from the giant Pandemonium one has at one's choice. Why is indigenous culture suddenly more sacred than any other culture? "** 40. He was eating the juice (marrow) from the inside of the bones of his legs that were cut off. Cultural appropriation is perhaps the stupidest example of the stupidest concept , political correctness , that has ever been argued. creators (a large majority being white) . The Windigo had a knife and he'd cut the boy on the hand to see if he was fat enough to eat, but the boy didn't get fat. Return to Article Details Culturally Conceptualizing Trauma: The Windigo in Joseph Boyden's Three Day Road People were not really using Google until the 2000s and that kind of info might have not been available in the 90s. [24], Although in many recorded cases of Wendigo psychosis the individual has been killed to prevent cannibalism from resulting, some Cree folklore recommends treatment by ingestion of fatty animal meats or drinking animal grease; those treated may sometimes vomit ice as part of the curing process. Ces pauures gens furent saisis, ce qu'on nous a dit, d'vn mal qui nous est inconnu, mais qui n'est pas bien extraordinaire parmy les peuples que nous cherchons: ils ne sont ny lunatiques, ny hypocondriaques, ny phrenetiques; mais ils ont vn mlange de toutes ces sortes de maladies, qui, leur blessant l'imagination, leur cause vne faim plus que canine, et les rend si affamez de chair humaine, qu'ils se iettent sur les femmes, sur les enfans, mesme sur les hommes, comme de vrais loups-garous, et les deuorent belles dents, sans se pouuoir rassasier ny saouler, cherchans tousiours nouuelle proye, et plus auidement que plus ils en ont mang. One recurring theme across these storytelling mediums is the use of the wendigoalso spelled wtikoa monstrous figure from Algonquian mythology who exhibits an insatiable greed along with a desire for human flesh. The book's cul-tural importance granted it not one, but two movie adaptations, the first in 1989 and the second in 2019. This was the end of this Giant Windigo. It was already here. 1. In most traditions, the wendigo is human in origin and becomes a monster through a process that results either from acts of starvation-induced cannibalism or from possession by a spirit. I'm just glad I learned this lesson from her before actually getting my book published. . What is cultural appropriation vs. cultural appreciation? If I can draw my own version of a Chinese dragon, or my own version of angel or demon, I can draw a wendigo. The e-book is here, and you can get a paperback copy here.). You dont have to be of Afro-Caribbean descent to talk about, write about, or make movies about zombies. The moral lessons contained in wendigo stories are also used to support the task of social critique in the late Native American scholar Dr. Jack D. Forbes book Columbus and Other Cannibals: The Wtiko Disease of Exploitation, Imperialism, and Terrorism (1978). Appreciation is honoring and respecting another culture and its practices, as a way to gain knowledge and understanding. If it's so vulgar and offensive that many hate it, well they can just not look at it lmao - it clearly wasn't made for them. Oh yeah, Marvel. So some may be fine if you draw it but don't say its full name. Cho isn't even only problematic character, Lavander changed her race (in movies, i'm not sure about books but still, Rowling could of said something). Second, he determines the relevant issues as "aesthetic" and "moral," and then discusses the most prominent arguments that surround each type of appropriation. "Windigo Psychosis: A Study of Relationship between Belief and Behaviour among the Indians of Northeastern Canada." Guillermo del Toro, producer of the film, developed the wendigo on the basis that the more the creature eats, the more it gets hungry and the more it gets hungry, the weaker it becomes. Okay, dont anybody get me wrong. Wendigos, teepees and cultural appropriation I read some stuff yesterday saying that teepees are cultural appropriation and there was a long post about how wendigos aren't cryptids and how stories about them are cultural appropriation. I always thought these are what cannibals are turning into. One does not need to delve very deeply into the annals of American film, television, and literature to find an array of caricatured depictions of Native American peoples and a distortion of their knowledge. With its bones pushing out against its skin, its complexion the ash gray of death, and its eyes pushed back deep into their sockets; the Wendigo looked like a gaunt skeleton recently disinterred from the grave. He writes: Wtiko is a Cree termwhich refers to a cannibal or, more specifically, to an evil person or spirit who terrorizes other creatures by means of terrible evil acts, including cannibalism I have come to the conclusion that imperialism and exploitation are forms of cannibalism and, in fact, are precisely those forms of cannibalism which are most diabolical or evil It should be understood that wtikos do not eat other humans only in a symbolic sense. I think if a Native American person were telling me not to speak about wendgos or name them out loud near them, I would comply, as I don't want to unreasonably make someone feel anxious or uncomfortable. The Wendigo is by far one of the most mysterious and feared monsters in not only in the Algonquian folklore which it is attributed to, but also other . In some cases, this entailed killing people with Wendigo psychosis. The Wendigo happens to be part of my own (Anishiinaabe) cultural heritage.