Product Description

The nineteenth-century Métis politician and mystic Louis Riel has emerged as one of the most popular - and elusive - figures in Canadian culture. Since his hanging for treason in 1885, the self-declared David of the New World has been depicted variously as a traitor to Confederation; a French-Canadian and Catholic martyr; a bloodthirsty rebel; a pan-American liberator; a pawn of shadowy white forces; a Prairie political maverick; a First Nations hero; an alienated intellectual; a victim of Western industrial progress; and even a Father of Confederation.

Albert Braz synthesizes the available material by and about Riel, including film, sculpture, and cartoons, as well as literature in French and English, and analyzes how an historical figure could be portrayed in such contradictory ways. In light of the fact that most aesthetic representations of Riel bear little resemblance not only to one another but also to their purported model, Braz suggests that they reveal less about Riel than they do about their authors and the society to which they belong. The most comprehensive treatment of the representations of Louis Riel in Canadian literature, The False Traitor will be a seminal work in the study of this popular Canadian figure.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4280938 in Books
• Published on: 2003-04-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

About the Author
Albert Braz is an assistant professor in the Department of Comparative Literature, Religion, and Film/Media Studies at the University of Alberta.

Customer Reviews

Louis Riel for Dummies
Riel, who led Metis rebellions in present-day Manitoba and Saskatchewan, is extremely important in Canadian history, but was repudiated by most Canadians (French-speakers were somewhat more sympathetic, though by no means unanimous) through WWII. Since then, more and more literature, art, and scholarship has treated Riel as a quintessentially embodiment the conflicts and contradictions of Canadian history and nationhood. The phrase, "fasle traitor," is meant to exemplify Riel's
Braz has done an excellent job of collected many diverse documents, including illustrations whose presence enliven this volume. He also lays out the various "Riels": traitor, lunatic, visionary, cultural mediator, and so forth. The argument suffers a bit from the need to treat so much material; at times it seems to descend into pure plot summary. However, it belongs on the bookshelf of all those interested in Riel, either historically or as a cultural icon.