Innu Discourses on the House
This paper analyses the discourses on housing by Innu men and women of three age groups (18-35 years, 35-60 years and elders) from four Innu communities : Mashteuiatsh (Pointe-Bleue), Uashat (Sept-Îles), Mani-Utenam (Maliotenam) et Nutashkuan. Six themes are studied: the role of the Innus; the Department of Indigenous Affairs and the Band Councils in relation to the construction of the houses; the shortage of houses; their shortage and overcrowding; the quality of construction of the houses; the models of houses; the advantages and disadvantages of living in a house; the house as symbol of acculturation, even of assimilation. Preceding this part a shorter section presents the main lines of a history of the house on the Innu reserves starting in the mid 19th century. The introduction presents the body of data selected from 60 interviews conducted between 2010-2012 and the methodology used in the content analysis of the discourses. The results of these analyses show a cultural ambivalence regarding the house compared with the tent: living in a house today is like a second best solution to life in a tent as in former times.