Identity, Nationality, Citizenship and Pride in Thomas King's 'Borders'

Many different aspects shape identity, citizenship, nationality and pride of an individual. All factors that tend to help shape an individual's identity, citizenship, nationality and pride are family, culture, friends, personal interests, and surrounding environments. Some variables may have more impact than others, and some may not influence at all. They're affected by many aspects of their lives as an individual grows up in a family. Parents and communities can affect an individual's sense of responsibility, morals and ethics, preferences in music, comedy and sports, and several other aspects of life. The taste of a person in clothing, music, speech, and social activities may be influenced by friends and surroundings. Knowing who we are plays a key role in how we think, how we feel, and how we go about our day to day lives. Every individual's identity, citizenship, nationality and pride is what keeps us unique and distinguishes us from one another. Thomas King's 'Borders' is a short story about identity, citizenship, nationality and pride. King allows the audience to understand the difficulties that Mother confronts, not to disclose the ethnicity of the country to which she belongs. Yet takes pride in presenting the cultural identity as 'Blackfoot'. King's short story 'Blackfoot' is written from the perspective of a twelve-year-old boy.

Indigenous people have experienced significant changes, including epidemics, forced relocations, ethnic conquest and genocide over the last few decades. Indigenous young people have not fairly understood or actively expressed these historical events, but the implications of behavioural health for them have been well recorded. Thomas King is of mixed European and indigenous descent, and he seems to recognize race as an inherently unstable collection of self-created fictions, to be viewed negatively rather than simply embraced. His prose is playfully comedic; with a deep sense of humour, he dismisses both white and indigenous assumptions of native life. Thomas King's value's in native issues are more than passing. His writing examines what it means to be indigenous to predominantly white society. Nevertheless, his writing does not isolate native elements from oppressive white forces or glorify native culture. King's writings are about the act of storytelling. Often, King develops stories within a story or infuses one story with another. King held a background in academia and writing. Since graduating, he completed the Ph.D. programme at Utah University but then moved to Canada. This was around this period that King had his most detailed deals with natives, which had inspired most of his writings. date, twelve anthologies have been reprinted on their own. His talents work in a variety of media, and many of his storeys have been produced as film or radio dramas, with King providing the scripts. 'Borders' demonstrate the effect of Western society and culture on young Aboriginal Canadians, not just in terms of heritage, but also in terms of Indigenous identity.

The main protagonist is a woman 'Mother' whose target, along with her son, is to cross the border to visit Salt Lake City. She is portrayed as a very solid, powerful, confident, courageous, independent, a resilient character who refuses to abandon her cultural identity, regardless of the influence on her to either choose the United States or Canada. She's demanding respect. The mother of Laetitia has many positive attributes. She never alters and remains the same person throughout the entire story. The author uses irony to hide behind the narrator's emotions and ensure that his message is delivered successfully without insulting anybody. This is shown when the narrator says, 'It didn't take them long to ruin their sense of humour, I can tell you that'. It suggests that the guards interpreted the mother's responses to their enquiry as to whether she was an American or a Canadian as a joke at the outset, and then, throughout the story, the guards gradually lost their sense of humour. As she told the guard a lot that she was Blackfoot, the guard said, 'I know. If I were, I'd be proud to be Blackfoot'. The guard's reaction to her defiance shows that both the officers and the mother are irritated. They were both powerful-minded. If someone is proud of what they are, they can be helped in future situations. Just like the 'Border' Mother. All the more essential than among the native characters, however, is the role of interaction between the native mother of the protagonist and the white people she encounters, in general, the border authorities. Border guards on both ends first try to ignore the woman's statement of Blackfoot citizenship and start the conversation again, believing that the previous declaration never happened. She refuses to give in to White's domination and attaches fiercely to her Blackfoot identity. It is only when Mel, the owner of a convenience store located between the borders, calls in the public, which commences exerting pressure on the authorities, that mother and son are gradually allowed to continue their voyage. I believe that her pride was necessary to demonstrate how keeping your ethics can bring about a radical change, no matter how insignificant. Pride is an important characteristic that can be evolved as a character. When Laetitia's brother says, 'Pride is a good thing to have, you know, Laetitia's had a lot of pride, and so did my mother, I thought I'd have it someday, too'. Laetitia's brother appears to believe that pride is something you retain from your family, and he understands it's very crucial. Another sample is when Stella tried to make a bargain with Laetitia's mother so that she could find out about her heritage, she wouldn't sacrifice her dignity, and 'My mother stood up and praised Stella for her time'. Laetitia's mother stands up to her family, no matter what, and is always loyal. Sometimes pride is a very positive trait to have. By the conclusion, the mother is proud of her family, her heritage, and where she comes from. The mother keeps coming back to the border to still identify herself as a child.

'Borders' by Thomas King indicates that identity is fluid. Nationality, citizenship and pride all affect this, and because of their new experiences, the majority of people immigrate to their identities. King's short story 'Borders' confronts this issue directly. Thomas King's 'Borders', conveys how 'Mothers'' pride, citizenship, nationality and identity wouldn't allow her to submit herself to be a Canadian or American citizen. Your identity, citizenship, nationality and pride are all crucial to who you are and how others define who you are. Many phrases reinforce nationality, citizenship, identity and pride. Keep in mind, 'never forget where you come from'. An example of who you are according to your heritage and the place where the tradition is born.