Journal of Maritime Literature and Culture
JMLC, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2026, pp.62-74.
Print ISSN: 3107-1821; Online ISSN: 3107-183X
Journal homepage: https://www.mlcjournal.com
DOI： https://doi.org/10.64058/JMLC.26.1.05
Cultural Predicaments of Polar Maritime Communities in Dogsong
Zhu Hua, Wang Lei
Abstract: Dogsong, a Bildungsroman featuring an Eskimo youth, was published in the mid-1980s, a period when Arctic issues were drawing increasing global attention. The novel adopts innovative narrative forms to represent real-life predicaments faced by Arctic indigenous peoples as well as cultural resilience, which earned the novel the Newbery Medal. The novel’s concern with the deterioration of Arctic cultural ecology constitutes its overt social significance, while its underlying shamanic soul-journey narrative structure consolidates this significance. During the dark adventure over the ice, dreams and reality blend into each other, revealing a history of Arctic survival that relies on oral tradition rather than written records. In the novel, dreams, hallucinations, running, and the human–animal transformations serve as impressionistic representations of the shamanic trance state. By reshaping Arctic cultural practices and shamanic cosmology in modern forms and presenting contemporary indigenous life in a manner accessible to readers, the novel develops a distinctive strategy for addressing cultural dilemmas.
Keywords: Dogsong; Gary Paulsen; Shamanism; Eskimo; Bildungsroman; Arctic Maritime Culture
Author Biographies: Zhu Hua is a professor of literature at the Department of English, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China. His research focuses on world sea literature, Arctic writings, Sino-American transnational writings, diaspora and transnationalism. E-mail: hzhu@shou.edu.cn. Wang Lei (Corresponding author) is a lecturer of literature at the Department of English, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai China (201306). Her research focuses on American culture and literature. E-mail: lwang@shou.edu.cn.
题目：《雪橇犬之歌》：极地海洋民族的文化困境
摘要：以爱斯基摩少年为主角的现代成长小说《雪橇犬之歌》，出版于北极问题备受关注的1980年代中期，因其精确反映极地海洋原住民的现实困境，并运用独特的叙事手法呈现走出困境的文化努力而获得纽伯瑞文学奖。从人类学视角来看，小说对北极文化生态恶化的关注是其外显的社会意义，而深层的萨满灵魂旅行叙事结构则以美学的方式巩固了小说的社会意义。在北冰洋的极夜历险中，梦境与现实无缝切换，展现没有文字记载依靠口口相传的北极生存史。小说中梦境、幻觉、奔跑、人与动物间的自由转换是对萨满进入迷狂状态的写意性呈现。将北极特有的文化习俗与萨满宇宙观进行现代形变，以读者可以理解的方式由表及里地呈现当代原住民生活，是小说解决文化困境的独特手法。
关键词：《雪橇犬之歌》；加里·保森；萨满；爱斯基摩；成长小说；极地海洋文化
作者简介：朱骅，上海海洋大学外国语学院英语系教授，文学博士，从事世界海洋文学、极地书写、中美跨国书写、离散与跨国主义理论等研究。电子邮箱: hzhu@shou.edu.cn。王蕾（通讯作者），上海海洋大学外国语学院讲师，博士，从事美国文学与文化研究。电子邮箱：lwang@shou.edu.cn。
Received: 26 Feb 2026 / Revised: 21 Mar 2026 / Accepted: 26 Mar 2026 / Published online: 30 Apr 2026 / Print published: 30 May 2026.
