Today in class, we discussed the differences between the original 1941 and the edited 1951 editions of "Tanoo." Perhaps, we thought, Irwin publishers wanted to focus on the intimate and spiritual aspect of Emily Carr's relationship with nature-In other words, to delete certain passages and sentences in the name of preserving her artistic abilities. Negative events inherently capture audiences' attention, thus if these contrasting statements were kept, they would take away the aesthetic values in Carr's writings. For instance, the 1941 edition of "Tanoo" would be a story that stands out from the rest of the stories in the 1951 edition because it is the only one that does not strictly focus on nature and spirituality, but is in fact upsetting and discounts Native way of life. Furthermore, Carr is a widely recognized Canadian. It would be wise to perhaps have readers from other countries see Carr's writing as a representation of a far-off place a person may not have the opportunity to ever visit. In this respect, Irwin may be trying to preserve the idealistic Canada one may be accustomed to believing. However, I find it cruelly unfair Irwin took a piece awarded the Governor's General Award and erase passages after Carr's death. To the best of my knowledge, "Tanoo" (and "Martha's Joey," as Dr. Martineau tells us) is the only vastly edited piece. I am curious as to what "Martha's Joey" is about, since "Tanoo" was edited so that it completely altered Carr's meaning "Martha's Joey" must have been abominable in the eyes or Irwin.

As I mentioned in my prior journal, I still believe Irwin was interested in capturing a wider audience. By editing Carr's pieces, her works would be more acceptable to the reading public, predominantly the white and educated who would agree to the "civilization" of Natives by European missionaries.

An important reason for deleting text may be for political reasons. I will save this discussion for when I have a greater grasp of this knowledge, hopefully after reading "Martha's Joey." This should be interesting.