The Quileute tribe of the Olympic Peninsula, pushed into the spotlight by the popular “Twilight” films, does not turn into wolves. Quileute women are not passive and subservient. Shirtless, well-muscled Quileute boys do not hang around street corners. Quileute men are not prone to violence.
These are just a few of the myths combated by Truth Versus Twilight, a website launched by the Burke Museum of Natural History and the Quileute tribe in light of the “Twilight” phenomenon. The website promotes a truthful portrayal of the Quileute Native people by debunking myths portrayed by the “Twilight” movies, creating a space in which genuine Quileute culture and traditions are promoted and shared.
The site also explores the representation of unequal gender roles, misappropriation of cultural symbols, and the misrepresentation of Native people in the media. Although the website was created about one year ago, Dr. Deana Dartt-Newton, who previously worked as the curator of Native American ethnology at the Burke and played a central role in the creation of this website, hopes to see increased traffic on the website with the launch of the final movie in the “Twilight” saga.
Dartt-Newton said, overall, the response to the website has been positive. However, some fans argue that its creation was an overreaction.
“Within this pop-culture phenomenon, we … are able to educate people about, No. 1, who the real Quileute people are and, No. 2, how hurtful these stereotypes are and how alive and well many of these stereotypes are about Native Americans, and, thirdly, to provide an alternative to those false representations of Native people,” Dartt-Newton said.
“I hope that the Quileute Nation and … this alternative narrative will be heard during this time of renewed excitement about the [Twilight] story,” Dartt-Newton said.
Tasia Endo, a former UW graduate student who helped develop the website, said it is important for “Twilight” viewers to understand how harmful the false portrayal of the Quileute People has been and continues to be for the tribe, and hopes that the website will continue to combat these stereotypes.
“I think it’s a really great resource for ‘Twilight’ fans because ‘Twilight’ … really exists in a fantasy, yet it happens in a very real place with real people,” Endo said. “The Quileute people have this vibrant culture, and they’re being exploited.”
Charlotte Cote, associate professor of American Indian studies at the UW, said while the book itself is problematic on many levels, Native people in general have faced misrepresentation for decades.
“The issues go way further back than the Stephenie Meyer’s books,” Cote said. “The problem is, when you look at Native images in Hollywood … a lot of this came about because of the old classic Westerns in the 1960s, where you have this ability to develop an image that becomes a huge market.”
Viewers of the website will find an accurate, historical account of the Quileute tribe, along with a description of modern Quileute life.
The website also focuses on Quileute art “beyond wolves,” which includes basketry and carving and gives the true story of the significance of wolves to the Quileute people, which is distorted in the books and movies.
No comments:
Post a Comment