The Rez Sisters Sparknotes

The Rez Sisters by Tomson Highway gives an authentic glimpse into life on the reserve. The glimpse Highway presents however, is not what one would expect. An audience member seeing a play set on a reserve would expect a tragic story about the social and economic issues prevailing in Indigenous communities. While the play does comment on the reserve’s unfavorable circumstances, it is done through the humorous, optimistic and resilient lens of the Indigenous women. By writing from the perspective of Indigenous women, Highway illustrates the importance of Indigenous values in coping with life experiences. I will first discuss how the Indigenous value of humor is used in the play as both an expression of care in relationships, and as a coping mechanism

For Zha, a particularly vulnerable individual, Nanabush is her protector. Nanabush as Zha’s protector can be observed when Zha describes her brutal sexual assault (47-48). Zha’s description of her horrific rape was extremely matter of fact and lacking emotions. Meanwhile, Nanabush is described as going through “agonizing contortions” during Zha’s description (48). Nanabush’s movements suggest that he is not only feeling Zha’s pain but is expressing what she is unable to due to her disability. Additionally, when Zha says “Don’t Fly Away” in her description, it suggests that Nanabush was present during the assault itself. Thus, Zha did not endure it alone, likely offering her great comfort. While sexual assault can and does happen to anyone, it is more prevalent in isolated communities such as reserves. Highway thus brought attention to the issue of assault while simultaneously demonstrating how Indigenous beliefs offer comfort and resiliency in these traumatic experiences. Overall, Nanabush is evidently a valued aspect of Indigenous culture. Nanabush, in his many forms, taught me the various ways Indigenous culture and spirituality can offer support in times of

My previous knowledge was mostly grounded in stereotypes which primarily emphasize otherness. Highway however, dissembled those stereotypes through his emphasis on Indigenous values. He demonstrated how the Indigenous values of humor, Nanabush and family helped the women cope with and overcome both typical and adverse life experiences. The women used humor to express care for one another and to cope with negative circumstances. Nanabush offered hope, comfort and protection to Pelajia, Marie Adele and Zha respectively. As a strong family unit, the women repeatedly offered unconditional love and support to each other. In The Rez Sisters, Highway includes many real issues that still plague reserves today, but rather than compose a tragic story, he created a story rooted in Indigenous values about resiliency, laughter and love. Insert quote possibly? Consequently, The Rez Sisters did not teach me to view Indigenous people as good or bad; it taught me to view them as authentic human