From Red Ochre to Black Gold

Olaf Uwe Janzen is an associate professor of history at Memorial
University, reviews editor of The Northern Mariner, and the editor of
Northern Seas.

As the editor explains in the introduction, this book attempts to
explain why Newfoundland remains so poor today despite the wealth of
resources it has enjoyed over the centuries. Toward this end of the book
are 10 essays (most previously published), which examine Newfoundland
history from the Aboriginal past (one of the late Ralph Pastore’s
essays on the Beothuk Indians) to the present (Wade Locke’s analysis
of the implications of the offshore oil and gas industry for
Newfoundland). In between are essays on such topics as commercial
sealing (Shannon Ryan), the recreational uses of the Newfoundland
environment (Marjorie Doyle, Darrin McGrath, James Overton), the
relationship of small coastal communities with Newfoundland’s
political and cultural nexus (Tom Nemec, Jodi Durdle and Maura
Hanrahan), and resource-based economic development (Peter Sinclair).

The sheer diversity of these essays overwhelms the editor’s ability
to preserve a sense of coherence. There is no clear conclusion; McGrath
is inclined to lament the way in which “political power resides with
externally based sources of control,” yet he also uses his book to
show how “Newfoundland culture has been influenced by the
ever-present, often hostile environment.” One cannot help but think
that other essays—say, Jim Hiller’s publications on the origins of
the pulp and paper industry or Eric Sager’s analysis of the failure of
Newfoundland’s “fishocracy” to diversify Newfoundland’s
traditional economy—would serve McGrath’s themes better. As it
stands, From Red Ochre to Black Gold would have benefited from a more
coherent focus, a better choice of essays, and perhaps a concluding
essay by the editor to reaffirm whatever it was that inspired him to put
the collection together in the first place.