Monkey Beach Sparknotes

Evan Davies Monkey Beach
January 14
English 12
Ms. Neilson

Throughout the novel "Monkey Beach," author Eden Robinson tells the story of a young Haisla woman named Lisamarie as she navigates the aftermath of several traumatic experiences in her Indigenous community of Kitamaat. Lisamarie's coping mechanisms and journey to find closure in dealing with her traumatic experiences demonstrate realistic responses to trauma that are faced by Indigenous communities across Canada, as well as the importance of reconciliation in finding closure in real-world Canadian Indigenous communities through healthy coping mechanisms. Through Lisamarie's coping mechanisms, Robinson highlights the realistic ways in which Indigenous communities respond to trauma,

The removal of children from their families to attend residential schools has resulted in a loss of language, culture, and connection to the land. This trauma has been passed down through generations, affecting not only those who experienced it firsthand but also their descendants. This point is evident in the novel "Monkey Beach," where Lisamarie struggles to understand the trauma caused by the residential school system on members of her family. Lisa never attended residential school, although she was made aware that her favorite Uncle Mick had attended a residential school after overhearing his echoing shout, “Crazy? I’m Crazy? You look at your precious church. You look at what they did. You never went to a residential school. You can’t tell me what I fucking went through and what I didn’t.” (Robinson #109). Lisa viewed Mick as a role model, so when Mick was unable to teach Lisa healthy coping mechanisms Lisa had no one else to turn to. At times Lisa would lash out in a similar way to Mick when she was unable to voice her problems. Mick’s inability to deal with trauma due to his harsh experiences in the residential school system had been passed down to Lisa creating a cycle of intergenerational trauma. Robinson incorporated instances of intergenerational trauma throughout “Monkey Beach” to bring awareness to the challenges faced by Indigenous communities across Canada. Despite the challenges they face, Indigenous communities in Canada have found ways to cope with trauma and maintain a connection to their land and culture. One example of a Canadian Indigenous community reconnecting comes from the Okanagan Indigenous peoples who are in the process of learning how to reconnect with their traditional ways of life. They understand that there always needs to be a connection to the individual, the family, the community, and the natural world. This understanding is