What Is Dialect In Maria Campbell's Stories Of The Road Allowance People

Maria Campbell’s Stories of the Road Allowance People provides the audience with engaging stories while providing insight into the histories of the Indigenous peoples. This book is more than just a history book or an entertainment piece, it draws the reader into the life and culture of those whose stories it shares. By providing the reader with exquisite art to accompany the stories, Campbell is able to give the reader as full of an experience of First Nations and Metis culture that a book can allow. She is able to represent the storytellers in her book with dignity and power because she uses the stories of elders of the Metis tribes. The combination of the pictures and the fair portrayal of Aboriginal peoples by Metis elders makes this book beautifully unique, however what is the most capturing and what stands out the most to the reader is her use of dialect which in itself paints an entire picture for …show more content…
Sharla Peltier, an Aboriginal speech and language pathologist explains that language is “key to supporting the individual’s identity and ties to [the] distinct Aboriginal community.” Peltier makes it clear that language is more than just a way of communication, it is a way to identify oneself while connecting spiritually with one’s culture. Campbell’s way of portraying these stories using the dialect reflecting the ways the elders spoke demonstrated respect to the importance of the language and storytelling practices. In “Jacob,” the speaker mentions that “ Ooh he was a good doctor too. All the peoples dey say dat bout him…” had she written it in edited English such as “he was a good doctor too, everyone says that about him,” it would not have given the same effect and the reader would not picture the speaker the same way. That being said, the reader could also struggle to engage in Stories of the Road Allowance People if they feel lost in the understanding of her use of