The Sel Family and the Residential School

Barkskins

This flow traces the hopes and betrayals surrounding residential schooling and its lasting consequences for Sel descendants.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Parent’s Hope A Parent’s Hope from "Barkskins". A Parent’s Hope Education as Protection Lobert and Nanty send Egga to residential school believing literacy will offer him work beyond logging.

A Parent’s Hope from "Barkskins". A Parent’s Hope Education as Protection Lobert and Nanty send Egga to residential school believing literacy will offer him work beyond logging.

A Parent’s Hope Education as Protection Lobert and Nanty send Egga to residential school believing literacy will offer him work beyond logging. Consent Under Pressure A government representative’s threat to remove the children makes their decision less voluntary than it appears.

The School’s Reality The School’s Reality from "Barkskins". The School’s Reality Labor Instead of Lessons Egga and Johnny Stick are made to shovel coal and receive little education.

The School’s Reality from "Barkskins". The School’s Reality Labor Instead of Lessons Egga and Johnny Stick are made to shovel coal and receive little education.

The School’s Reality Labor Instead of Lessons Egga and Johnny Stick are made to shovel coal and receive little education. Abuse and Secrecy Beatings, sexual abuse, and humiliation turn the school into a site of enslavement rather than instruction.

Escape and Family Silence Escape and Family Silence from "Barkskins". Escape and Family Silence Flight From Abuse Egga escapes and builds another life in the United States, leaving his family unaware of his fate.

Escape and Family Silence from "Barkskins". Escape and Family Silence Flight From Abuse Egga escapes and builds another life in the United States, leaving his family unaware of his fate.

Escape and Family Silence Flight From Abuse Egga escapes and builds another life in the United States, leaving his family unaware of his fate. Parents’ Grief Lobert and Nanty endure uncertainty, while the institution’s searches and threats deepen their fear.

Truth Reaches the Parents Truth Reaches the Parents from "Barkskins". Truth Reaches the Parents A Pattern Revealed Lobert and Nanty hear of abuse and deaths at the school, realizing their earlier trust was misplaced.

Truth Reaches the Parents from "Barkskins". Truth Reaches the Parents A Pattern Revealed Lobert and Nanty hear of abuse and deaths at the school, realizing their earlier trust was misplaced.

Truth Reaches the Parents A Pattern Revealed Lobert and Nanty hear of abuse and deaths at the school, realizing their earlier trust was misplaced. A Protective Change Lobert attempts to shield later children, though the harm to Egga and the family cannot be undone.

A Daughter’s Return A Daughter’s Return from "Barkskins". A Daughter’s Return Searching for Kin Sapatisia visits her Mi’kmaw relatives, connecting family memory with her study of plants and forests.

A Daughter’s Return from "Barkskins". A Daughter’s Return Searching for Kin Sapatisia visits her Mi’kmaw relatives, connecting family memory with her study of plants and forests.

A Daughter’s Return Searching for Kin Sapatisia visits her Mi’kmaw relatives, connecting family memory with her study of plants and forests. Repair Through Work Her later restoration project offers a form of cultural continuity without pretending the school’s injuries have disappeared.

When Egga is ten

During Egga’s school years

When Egga runs away

After other children attend the school

After Sapatisia leaves university