The Loss And Pursuit Of Native American Cultural Identity:An Interpretation Of The Plague Of Doves From The Perspective Of Homi Bhabha’s Hybridity Theory

Erdrich is the mainstay of American Indian literature,and she is regarded as one of the most important Native American writers.She has won numerous awards for her outstanding work,and her book The Plague of Doves won the Anisfield Wolf Book Award in 2009.The Plague of Doves tells the story of the conflict and integration between generations of Indians and whites in the town of Pluto and reservations,as well as the efforts of different individuals to find an identity in the process.The problem of identity has been plagued generations of Indians.Living in the multicultural world,how should the Indians preserve and reconstruct their cultural identity?The coexistence of multiculturalism makes people in vulnerable cultures question their cultural identity.In this case,the loss of identity and reconstruction is inevitable.Based on Homi Bhabha’s hybridity theory,this paper analyzes the causes of identity crisis of the characters in The Plague of Doves and the process of their identity reconstruction,which reflects Erdrich’s great concern for Native Americans.The erosion of white culture on Indian culture and the cut-off of the protagonists’ contact with native people inevitably leads to the loss of the identity of the protagonists in the hybrid culture.As dual “others” on the reservation and white society,Billy and Evelina are at a crisis of cultural identity,and then they began the journey of pursuing cultural identity.During the pursuit of cultural identity,due to the profound influence of white culture on Billy and his abandonment of his native culture,he did not complete the reconstruction of his identity in the end.While Evelina regain her local memory with the help of Mooshum,and finally construct her hybrid identity.The experience of Billy and Evelina gives Native Americans an enlightenment,that is,in the multicultural context,returning to tradition is not an effectual realistic strategy for marginalized characters.The cultural survival of tribal and individual depends on whether they have integrated foreign cultures successfully,rather than resistance or complete acceptance of foreign culture.Compared to the simple binary opposition model,hybridity is an effective way to maintain and reconstruct cultural identity.