For the White Poets Who Would be Indian (Critical Overview)

Critical Overview

Wendy Rose’s most notable contribution to contemporary American poetry is her ability to present controversial subjects in an insightful manner and to make them accessible to the general reader. She has been especially acclaimed for describing the tragedies and injustices of the Native American experience and doing so in a way that retains the poetic effect while still making political or social comments. Some critics have found her words disturbing, not only for their accusatory tone but also for their sense of untamed emotion and an “if you feel it, say it” agenda. Others, however, point out that this tendency is a strength rather than a weakness.

Just as interesting as the critics’ responses to Rose’s work are her responses to the treatment of Native American writing in general. In her interview with critic and fellow poet John Bruchac in Survival This Way, she had this to say about reviewers:

It’s a great frustration when people won’t review our work, for example, in the usual professional way, saying that they don’t have “the ethnographic knowledge” to do it or something. That’s a frustration to me because some of us . . . come out [of prestigious writing schools] and then find out . . . that they’re culturally too obscure to be reviewed as a real writer. That’s not true.

Rose has also pointed out that her books often end up in “Native American” sections of bookstores and libraries instead of in the general poetry or American literature sections. She finds this a personal affront to her work as a poet. Most store owners and librarians (and critics as well) may deny any intentional disrespect by this practice, but Rose’s point is in keeping with her continuing struggle for Native American rights and acceptance.