Review by Tiggywinkles -- At the Mouth of a Cannon
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Tiggywinkles
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- Latest Review: At the Mouth of a Cannon by Kevin Annett
Review by Tiggywinkles -- At the Mouth of a Cannon
[Following is a volunteer review of "At the Mouth of a Cannon" by Kevin Annett.]
When I did a brief Google search of Kevin D. Annett, the author of At the Mouth of a Cannon, I was not surprised to find that he is either adored or despised. At the Mouth of a Cannon is a work of non-fiction that explores the systematic destruction of the Ahousaht people of British Columbia. After reading Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee many years ago, I thought that I couldn’t be shocked by accounts of colonialist atrocities. I was wrong.
Annett delivers his content in an unapologetic style. He brutally describes the genocide of the Ahousaht people, along with the subsequent land and resource theft that occurred. This awful history began with the first European contact and continues to the present day. Annett's style is uncompromisingly blunt. What I liked the most about his writing is that he does not attempt to sanitize the narrative. He is forceful in his use of descriptive dialogue as he debates the culpable guilt of ‘clerical hitmen’ and ‘fat cat chiefs’. No-one is spared his barbed literary attacks. If you are interested in social justice and want to read an examination of the inner machinations of big business, Church and State, then you will enjoy this book. If, on the other hand, you are sensitively protective of a Christian, and or political ideology, then you may not enjoy reading Annett’s book.
Annett states that the name, Ahousaht, means ‘facing the sea’. The people believe that they have lived in Clayoquot Sound from the beginning of time. Annett's writing focusses on events following the Ahousaht's first contact with European invaders. Mainstream historical documentation purports that European contact began with the arrival of Captain James Cook in 1778. After this, for the Ahousaht, their existence was propelled on a rapid downhill trajectory. With the discovery of west coast gold in 1849 the European invasion gathered force. From then on, the relentless land grab began.
Sadly, the Ahousahts' story will be a familiar one, if you are a reader of the history of European colonization. It seems to be the same old play-book of divide, conquer, destroy, and take, take, take. The tactics of the conqueror don’t seem to differ when we look at the histories of early European settlement in continents the world over. The only part of these tragic stories that perhaps differ from each other, is the intensity of the violence in which the conquering is exercised. Annett proposes that what is unique, regarding the colonization of British Columbia, is that it was “launched, guided, maintained and then concealed by organized religion”.
Annett describes in great detail the strategies used to subjugate the Ahousaht people. The main offenders, alongside the complicit average citizen, are identified as being the ‘unholy trinity’ of big business, Church and State. He is scathing in his descriptions of the clergymen who decimated the indigenous population through the intentional infection of thousands, with smallpox. This initial tidal wave of destruction was backed-up, over the following decades, with the implementation of the Indian Residential Schools. Or, as Annett describes them, the ‘internment camps’. It is in these camps that the futures of Ahousaht children were stolen. The traditions, languages, and family bonds of the people were broken. Annett describes the Ahousaht as an exceptionally strong people. They resisted both colonization and Christianisation. For their acts of resistance, they were cruelly punished.
I would very much like to award this book a full score, however, as there were several issues with formatting I cannot. I found that the font chosen to write this book was not ideal. Words often had the appearance of having individual letters floating away, creating confusing spaces within the text. There were also many incidences of gaps in formatting, in which a line break would occur mid-sentence. As such, I must rate At the Mouth of a Cannon as receiving 3 out 4 stars.
I feel that Annett has created a compelling and original non-fiction work on the history of the murderous force of colonialism in British Columbia. In my opinion, he offers a deep examination of the culturally ingrained, and destructive nature of European Christianity. Annett proposes that our belief in our own superiority above all other cultures in the world has been our ongoing motivation for, and justification of genocide. If you decide to read it, be prepared to question the very foundation of modern western civilization. In Annett’s words, “the inescapable truth is that genocide is not alien to our culture, but it is our very own monotheistic religious ideal, arisen from out of Judeo-Christianity—the belief in our innate superiority over all faiths and cultures”. As I stated at the beginning of my review, Kevin D. Annett is a man adored, or a man despised. I urge you to read his book and decide for yourself.
******
At the Mouth of a Cannon
View: on Bookshelves
When I did a brief Google search of Kevin D. Annett, the author of At the Mouth of a Cannon, I was not surprised to find that he is either adored or despised. At the Mouth of a Cannon is a work of non-fiction that explores the systematic destruction of the Ahousaht people of British Columbia. After reading Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee many years ago, I thought that I couldn’t be shocked by accounts of colonialist atrocities. I was wrong.
Annett delivers his content in an unapologetic style. He brutally describes the genocide of the Ahousaht people, along with the subsequent land and resource theft that occurred. This awful history began with the first European contact and continues to the present day. Annett's style is uncompromisingly blunt. What I liked the most about his writing is that he does not attempt to sanitize the narrative. He is forceful in his use of descriptive dialogue as he debates the culpable guilt of ‘clerical hitmen’ and ‘fat cat chiefs’. No-one is spared his barbed literary attacks. If you are interested in social justice and want to read an examination of the inner machinations of big business, Church and State, then you will enjoy this book. If, on the other hand, you are sensitively protective of a Christian, and or political ideology, then you may not enjoy reading Annett’s book.
Annett states that the name, Ahousaht, means ‘facing the sea’. The people believe that they have lived in Clayoquot Sound from the beginning of time. Annett's writing focusses on events following the Ahousaht's first contact with European invaders. Mainstream historical documentation purports that European contact began with the arrival of Captain James Cook in 1778. After this, for the Ahousaht, their existence was propelled on a rapid downhill trajectory. With the discovery of west coast gold in 1849 the European invasion gathered force. From then on, the relentless land grab began.
Sadly, the Ahousahts' story will be a familiar one, if you are a reader of the history of European colonization. It seems to be the same old play-book of divide, conquer, destroy, and take, take, take. The tactics of the conqueror don’t seem to differ when we look at the histories of early European settlement in continents the world over. The only part of these tragic stories that perhaps differ from each other, is the intensity of the violence in which the conquering is exercised. Annett proposes that what is unique, regarding the colonization of British Columbia, is that it was “launched, guided, maintained and then concealed by organized religion”.
Annett describes in great detail the strategies used to subjugate the Ahousaht people. The main offenders, alongside the complicit average citizen, are identified as being the ‘unholy trinity’ of big business, Church and State. He is scathing in his descriptions of the clergymen who decimated the indigenous population through the intentional infection of thousands, with smallpox. This initial tidal wave of destruction was backed-up, over the following decades, with the implementation of the Indian Residential Schools. Or, as Annett describes them, the ‘internment camps’. It is in these camps that the futures of Ahousaht children were stolen. The traditions, languages, and family bonds of the people were broken. Annett describes the Ahousaht as an exceptionally strong people. They resisted both colonization and Christianisation. For their acts of resistance, they were cruelly punished.
I would very much like to award this book a full score, however, as there were several issues with formatting I cannot. I found that the font chosen to write this book was not ideal. Words often had the appearance of having individual letters floating away, creating confusing spaces within the text. There were also many incidences of gaps in formatting, in which a line break would occur mid-sentence. As such, I must rate At the Mouth of a Cannon as receiving 3 out 4 stars.
I feel that Annett has created a compelling and original non-fiction work on the history of the murderous force of colonialism in British Columbia. In my opinion, he offers a deep examination of the culturally ingrained, and destructive nature of European Christianity. Annett proposes that our belief in our own superiority above all other cultures in the world has been our ongoing motivation for, and justification of genocide. If you decide to read it, be prepared to question the very foundation of modern western civilization. In Annett’s words, “the inescapable truth is that genocide is not alien to our culture, but it is our very own monotheistic religious ideal, arisen from out of Judeo-Christianity—the belief in our innate superiority over all faiths and cultures”. As I stated at the beginning of my review, Kevin D. Annett is a man adored, or a man despised. I urge you to read his book and decide for yourself.
******
At the Mouth of a Cannon
View: on Bookshelves
Latest Review: At the Mouth of a Cannon by Kevin Annett
