Comparison Paper: Bridget Moran's 'Stoney Creek Woman' and Judy Fong Bate's 'Midnight At The Dragon Café' - Explore Two Young Women's Different Experiences

Comparison Paper: Bridget Moran's 'Stoney Creek Woman' and Judy Fong Bate's 'Midnight At The Dragon Café' - Explore Two Young Women's Different Experiences

Bridget Moran's 'Stoney Creek Woman'

'Stoney Creek Woman' is a book written by Bridget Moran, in which she has put into writing the life experiences of John Marry, detailing about the difficulties she had to experience in her socialization process. In this book, the author presents a beautiful picture of the life and hardship that Marry had to face in her life.

Born on the 16th of June, 1913, Mary John was the daughter of Anzel Quaw. Saik'uz was the place, where she was brought up by her stepfather Johnny Paul and her mother, along with her siblings: Bella, Alec, Mark and Melanie. Mary had to face lots of hardships during her childhood. The most memorable moment of her life was the survival from Spanish Flu of 1918. She was five years old at that time. It was a time when her parent were both ill, and she had to boil water for them. She was so young that she could not even reach the top of the stove (Moran, 2002, p. 44-49). Before going to Lejac Residential School, after it had initially started in the year 1922, Mary went to the Residential School that was located in Fort St. James.

At the age of fourteen, Mary quit the Residential School. Moreover, at the age of sixteen, she got married to Lazare John. She became the mother of twelve children: Ray, Winnie, Johnny, Helen, Charles, Florence, Gordie, Bernice, Doris, Ernie, Shirley and Arthur. Moreover, the couple also raised three other children's, Bernie, Rosa and Chester, and cared for them as their own children. Even though her time was mostly occupied by her children, yet, she never gave up on her will to be employed. Even with such a hectic schedule, because of the attention her children needed from her, she still did a job. She, along with her husband was employed at Binche Mines, where their job required them to cut woods (Moran, 2002, p. 44-49). Moreover, they also pulled stumps for farmers around Vanderhoof, at Vanderhoof airport and the riverside campsite (Walker, 2008, p. 44-48).

When she was young, students belonging to the First Nations had the opportunity to attend schools, but this was only until they reached the age of 16. This is because of the fact that students belonging to the First Nations were not allowed to attend schools after the age of 16, even if they had not completed their school education. Moreover, the freedom to decide the school they wanted to go and for what period of time was also not given to them. It was only after 1970 that they were allowed to do so. John said that, "What was planted in us, is that we don't fit anywhere" (Moran, 2002, ...