The Rez Sisters

The Rez Sisters explores the socially expected roles of women both in Wasy and off the reserve. Femininity and masculinity are often discussed among the seven sisters. Pelajia is consistently described—negatively—as masculine by the others. Her choice of wearing pants, rather than a skirt, is criticized a number of times by the other women. Pelajia considers her outfit choices to be practical—she says to Philomena, “gotta wear pants when you’re doing a man’s job. See? You got your skirt ripped on a nail” (7). The physical act of Philomena ripping her skirt supports Pelajia’s point that jeans are more durable when working on a roof. However, other women insult Pelajia for wearing pants. For instance, Veronique tells Pelajia she “look[s] obscene in those tight pants” (43) during the fight in the Wasy general store. Philomena takes this a step further, yelling at Pelajia, “At least I’m a woman” (44). The women on the reserve in the 1980s believe wearing pants as a woman is pretending to be a man and expect women to behave according to prescribed, stereotypical gender roles. Still, by the end of the play, even Annie acknowledges that Pelajia would make a suitable chief, a job traditionally held by a man.