Dead White Writer On The Floor Stereotypes
The Play Dead White Writer on the Floor by Drew Hayden Taylor explores Indigenous stereotypes of fictional characters from popular literature. The play starts with 6 Indigenous characters locked in a room. In act one, the characters find a white writer writing their lives. Disturbingly, he was found dead a little later on. The dead white writer's typewriter is still there, and they have an opportunity to rewrite their lives before the end of act one. In act two, the play opens up with all characters in a AA meeting. They had a chance at new life yet here they are faced with all these difficulties even after rewriting their own lives. One such character is Pocahontas. Throughout Act 1 of the play, Pocahontas is infantilized and sexualized by …show more content…
The audience can believe that all of these hardships happen because of what they signify, they are indigenous stereotypes. The reader can understand that Taylor gave them these problems because they fit what indigenous people face in this lifetime. It's a look into how you can’t escape your past even when you think you can. The problems you had are the problems you will have. Pocahontas is a perfect example of how the audience can see that people can embody stereotypes. Taylor added these stereotypes to these characters to give meaning and a connection to the book. In this act, the characters all have an encounter with a figure of authority. This figure of authority turns out to be the dead white writer appearing in their rewritten lives. Taylor writes, “I knew I’d seen him somewhere before…I asked him to leave us alone—what did we ever do to him? And he said, “It's not my choice.” He said he’d come back … tomorrow. “Sorry, it’s not my choice” That's what he said.” (Taylor, 101). Here the audience can infer the message: women still have no real power, and that no matter who they are, white men will always hold power over them. Here the audience can see that even with a rewritten life, women of this time, like Pocahontas still have hardships. This play connects to the stereotypes that contemporary Indigenous women face
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