The Drums of Winter (Uksuum Cauyai): An Analysis of Bakhtinian Dialogism and Intersubjectivity

Abstract

This paper utilizes Mikhail Bakhtin’s theories of dialogism and heteroglossia in order to argue that the makers of the film, The Drums of Winter, produce an ultimately monologic presentation of Yup’ik dance, despite their intentions to create a collaborative ethnographic film. Tang further argues that through their conversations with one another, the three Yup’ik community interlocutors featured in the film reframe and contest this monologic presentation of Yup’ik dance. In order to illuminate this further, Tang draws from Charles Briggs’ analysis of the interview setting as problematized by power relations and communicative hegemony.