Magic and the Supernatural - Lancaster University

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Coming-of-Age among Sasquatches and Tree Spirits
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confronted with (and seduced by) distorted reflections of their own desires and
fears.’ 19 This observation supports my claim that Lisamarie’s emotional, spiritual,
and psychological developments are greatly influenced by her encounters with the
supernatural, especially due to the spirits’ ability to mirror and reflect the young
woman’s behaviour back at herself. Lisamarie’s recognition of herself as a monster
enables her to establish links with her Haisla heritage through the comprehension
of aboriginal myths, and must therefore be regarded as a crucial breakthrough in
her quest for the discovery of her identity. 20
5. Acceptance
The passages mentioned above are exemplary of Lisamarie’s spiritual
development which reaches a climax at the end of the novel when she searches for
Jimmy and lands with her boat on Monkey Beach. Hoping to find an answer to her
brother’s fate, she sacrifices her blood to the spirits. As the present, past, and future
intermingle, dream and reality merge, and Lisamarie finds herself reunited with
deceased family members such as Mick and Ma-ma-oo. Having found her roots in
Haisla culture and heritage, she comprehends the interrelationships of the past and
present and her emotional maturity is revealed by her understanding of her
ancestors’ language. The ghosts speak to her and offer her advice. Jimmy’s fate
remains subject to speculation, but the intensive connection between Lisamarie and
the spiritual world manifests itself as the most essential one in her life, which is
emphasized during this crucial spiritual encounter. The European model of the
‘delusional’ or ‘immature’ mind that is associated with Lisamarie’s supernatural
contacts is just the opposite of that; she matures through these encounters and finds
a way to accept herself as a multi-layered person, which cures her and successfully
ends her quest for herself. 21
Notes
1
C.A. Howells, Contemporary Canadian Women’s Fiction: Refiguring Identities,
Macmillan, New York, 2003, p. 184.
2
J. Andrews, ‘Native Canadian Gothic Refigured: Reading Eden Robinson’s
Monkey Beach’, Essays on Canadian Writing, Vol. 73, Spring 2001, p. 18.
3
J. Castricano, ‘Learning to Talk with Ghosts: Canadian Gothic and the Poetics of
Haunting in Eden Robinson’s Monkey Beach’, University of Toronto Quarterly,
Vol. 75, No. 2, 2006, p. 812.
4
E. Robinson, Monkey Beach, Knopf, Toronto, 2000, p. 153.
5
Ibid., p. 17.
6
Ibid., p. 19.
7
Andrews, op. cit., p. 16.
8
Robinson, op. cit., p. 132.
9
Ibid., p. 7.