الفهرس 
Roots vs. Routes: Syncretism and Syncretic DramaOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
This thesis is an attempt to examine dramatic syncretism, within the
realm of post-colonialism, as a mode of indigenous identity representation
by a number of native playwrights. The playwrights under scrutiny use
syncretism differently to refute claims of purity, authenticity and
essentialism imposed on the indigenes by the hemogenic colonizer.
Employing syncretism entails blending the western dramatic canon with
indigenous dramaturgical techniques to build a greater view of how
indigenous identity is restructuring and reclaiming a new status of
development and change in the post-colonial era.
The plays analyzed are Derek Walcott’s Dream on Monkey
Mountain (1967), Ola Rotimi’s The Gods Are Not To Blame (1971),
Tomson Highway’s The Rez Sisters (1986), Diane Glancy’s American
Gypsy (2002), Jack Davis’s The Dreamers (1982), and Hone Kouka’s Nga
Tangata Toa (The Warrior People) (1994).
The study concludes that syncretism, with its dialogic capability, is
an effective decolonizing tool that allows a true representation of the
indigene that is flexible, adaptable, and resistant.
Key Words: Syncretism, Syncretic Drama, Indigenous and Aboriginal
Drama, Authenticity, Indigeneity.