Stories in a New Skin

A groundbreaking introduction to Inuit literary criticism.

In an age where southern power-holders look north and see only vacant polar landscapes, isolated communities, and exploitable resources, it is important to note that the Inuit homeland encompasses extensive philosophical, political, and literary traditions. Stories in a New Skin is a seminal text that explores these Arctic literary traditions and, in the process, reveals a pathway into Inuit literary criticism. Author Keavy Martin considers writing, storytelling, and performance from a range of genres and historical periods - the classic stories and songs of Inuit oral traditions, life writing, oral histories, and contemporary fiction, poetry and film - and discusses the ways in which these texts constitute an autonomous literary tradition. She draws attention to the interconnection between language, form and context and illustrates the capacity of Inuit writers, singers and storytellers to instruct diverse audiences in the appreciation of Inuit texts. Although Eurowestern academic contexts and literary terminology are a relatively foreign presence in Inuit territory, Martin builds on the inherent adaptability and resilience of Inuit genres in order to foster greater southern awareness of a tradition whose audience has remained primarily northern.

Preface: Literate Landscapes / Introduction: Strangers in a Strange Land / Ch 1. "It Was Said They Had One Song”: ‘Tuniit’ Stories and the Origins of Inuit Nationhood / Ch 2. A Very Strange Set of Tracks: Reading Unipkaaqtuat, the Classic Inuit Tales / Ch 3. Tall Tales and Truth-Telling: Inuit Life Writing, Oral Histories, and Literary Criticism / Ch 4. "Let Me Sing Slowly and Search for a Song”: Inuit ‘Poetry’ and the Legacy of Knud Rasmussen / Ch 5. Arctic Solitude: Mitiarjuk’s Sanaaq and the Politics of Translation in Inuit Literature / Appendices, Glossary, Bibliography, Notes, Index