It shook up my self-reliance and pushed me beyond understanding on a rational level.
Reading Tanya Tagaq, I experienced some of the unsettling “turning” that Buber talks about when we openly engage in a dialogue allowing it to transform us. With the term “genuine dialogue” I refer to Martin Buber (1998, 75) who explains: “In genuine dialogue the turning to the partner takes place in all truth, that is, it is a turning of the being.” He distinguishes this “living mutual relation” (Buber 2002, 22) from two other kinds of encounter: first “ technical dialogue, which is prompted solely by the need of objective understanding” and second “ monologue disguised as dialogue” disregarding the presence of the other, being solely interested in having one’s own self-reliance confirmed. And yet, we as Western thinkers would gain so much if we were to engage in “genuine dialogue” with Indigenous philosophies. Unfortunately, Indigenous traditions are still rarely part of the philosophical discourse. Thus, I am interested in “intercultural philosophy”. And I am a philosopher who takes great interest in these places, who seeks to research them – preferably also from a place “in between”. I am a philosopher who studies and works in places that are “in between”: between different disciplines, cultures, and methods. This is a reflection of a white woman coming from a very different place feeling a deep connection and at the same time a strong sense of alienation. Although I am referring to an incredible book written by an Inuk artist, the starting point for my reflections is what happened with me reading it. With my article, I would like to share some of my experiences reading Split Tooth as I became curious about myself and my reactions to a story that upset me and fascinated me at the same time. As social worker and researcher working with juvenile sex offenders, I witnessed the heavy burden of abuse and alcohol as well as suicidal thoughts in midst of a spiritual reality sparked by a natural environment that doesn’t allow for compromise. I used to live in Canada and spent time in Indigenous communities, especially in the Arctic. Reading Tanya Tagaq’s (2018) Split Tooth affected me on a very profound level.
Trigger Warning: This article includes references to (child) sexual abuse.
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