The Loss of Native Tradition
Monkey Beach encapsulates the phenomenon of Native culture being lost through Westernization. This theme is reiterated in Lisamarie's narration about the Haisla folklore that has been lost through the disappearance of their language. When the stories are told in English, the same meaning is almost impossible to replicate. In this example we are made to see how unique each tribal culture is and how their loss leads to people becoming disconnected from their roots.
Without people actively trying to maintain the generations-old knowledge and traditions, it quickly becomes swept under by the forces of modernity. We can infer that the cycles of addiction in Lisamarie's extended family (and within the Kitamaat community in general) are a symptom of this cultural amnesia and loss of collective identity. Through Ma-ma-oo, Lisa is able to learn about her lineage and make sense out of her psychic experiences; experiences which have no explanation in the modern rationalistic paradigm.
Death
Death is a theme that echoes throughout Monkey Beach. Lisamarie loses many of her close relations, such as Uncle Mick, Ma-ma-oo, and her friend Pooch. We also hear anecdotally about many people who have died, often in intense ways, such as Pooch's father committing suicide or Ma-ma-oo's sister Mimayus dying at sea. In the book, we see the characters embody various attitudes towards death.
For someone like Ma-ma-oo—who is still connected to the Haisla cosmology, where the ancestors live on in the spirit world—death is simply a transition out of the physical body. Lisa's mother, on the other hand, firmly rejects the notion that the afterlife exists. As a young person, Lisa is not exactly sure how she feels. When she personally experiences the death of her loved ones, however, she begins to look for answers. She is not content to pretend that Uncle Mick, for instance, never existed. From Ma-ma-oo she learns the invaluable lesson that those who have died must be honored—and when they are, those who are still alive can be at peace.
The Responsibility of Spiritual Gifts
One of the pivotal moments of the book comes when Lisamarie and her grandmother are foraging for plants in the forest and Ma-ma-oo introduces her to oxasuli, a type of root which can be used to protect one's space from evil spirits. Ma-ma-oo warns Lisa that one must have the proper knowledge before approaching oxasuli, because if used in the wrong way, it can be deadly.
The oxasuli is a symbol for the way Lisa struggles with her gifts throughout the story. She often walks in between worlds, seeing both the physical and the spiritual, but not firmly grounded in either, leading to confusion. Much of her pain derives from not knowing how to relate to her spiritual messengers, such as the little man. She comes to learn that the little man is not to be seen as strictly all good or all evil, but simply as a guide who can help at times. He does not replace Lisamarie's own discernment and willpower.
We are shown how using her powers is a choice that Lisa must make, requiring her to take life seriously and not play games with spiritual forces. At the end of the book, Ma-ma-oo encourages her granddaughter to embrace the role of a real medicine person, which is a person who has consciously harnessed their abilities for good.
Family
Family ties are strong in Kitamaat, especially with the long history of the Haisla people living in more of a tribal structure. Unlike in much of Westernized society, extended families stick together more and provide a support system for one another, as demonstrated by the way Lisa is constantly spending time with one of her aunts, uncles, or cousins. On one hand, when families are close-knit it can be more difficult for the children to get out of dysfunctional situations and unconscious patterns, as we see with Tab and her mother Trudy. Yet we are also shown how loving families are invaluable as a source of stability for their children. Though Lisamarie runs away from home for a time, she decides to return. Despite their faults, she can appreciate that her parents have always tried to provide her with love and resources—something that not everyone, such as Pooch, is lucky enough to have.
Lisamarie's temporary estrangement from her family more so comes from a place of confusion after the death of her grandmother. Ma-ma-oo was always telling Lisa family stories, stories that she could not hear from anyone else. After she dies, Lisa feels like she is cut from her own history and from the one person who would acknowledge their ancestral roots. Ultimately, we see how family is the center of everyone's lives, as even in times of poverty and tragedy, there is always the family to fall back on as a source of comfort and respite.
Addiction
Addiction is highly prevalent in this novel, although it often appears in different forms. It shows itself most obviously in the way Lisa falls into addictive behaviors like smoking cigarettes and, once in Vancouver, taking drugs and drinking excessively. However this is not something unique to Lisa; it is a behavior that occurs throughout her family and throughout the Kitamaat community in general. Everyone seems to have their vices, such as Aunt Trudy's binge drinking, Lisa's friends smoking pot, and even Lisa's parents and their dependency on coffee and cigarettes, which they consume constantly.
Addiction is a common response to escape pain and suffering, and in Lisa's case, it is to numb herself from her grief, as well as to avoid her spiritual gifts and the responsibility that comes with them. Specifically to the Haisla people, addiction can be seen as a coping mechanism for the harshness of modern life and the difficulty in assimilating to a materialistic and individual-oriented culture. We are taught through Lisa, however, that addiction can never be a means of really solving one's problems. Lisa eventually has to crash and burn in Vancouver, ruining her health and wasting her trust fund money on partying, to finally learn that she must face life's difficulties and traumas head-on in order to find true healing.
The Power of Nature
In Monkey Beach, the descriptions of nature are an essential part of the storyline, with the ocean and mountains almost like characters in themselves. As is common in First Nations culture, the natural world is seen as alive and full of power. At a time when most people have become totally estranged from nature, Lisa and her family live in a way that is still very intertwined with the natural world. Lisa and her grandmother often go foraging for berries or roots with medicinal properties. Lisa is in constant communion with the elements, such as the breeze and the sounds of animals, which for someone who is psychically sensitive, are like messengers from the spirit world.
Throughout the book, we also see the theme of nature as a force that must be respected. There is the ocean, which is on one hand a beautiful place to swim and boat, but on the other hand is something that can swallow a person alive, such as it may have done to Jimmy. The animal kingdom is also a realm of both wonder and ferociousness as demonstrated by the seals who devour Mick.
Loneliness
Loneliness and social isolation play a big part in Lisamarie's coming-of-age story. Lisamarie is someone with strong ideals and dislikes having to change herself to please others, just like her Uncle Mick. Lisa is often bullied in school for being "weird." She also chooses to isolate herself from her female friends, such as her cousin Erica, rejecting the superficial "girly girl" mold that is pushed on young women. She finds better company with boys, but as she becomes a teenager, the typical flirtation between the sexes makes platonic male friendship a challenge as well.
At the root of Lisa's alienation are her spiritual gifts which make her aware of a whole layer of reality to which others are blind. She is not just lonely in school, but in her own home life, where her more materialistic parents believe her visions to be a mental illness that needs to be eliminated. Alienated from her own Haisla lineage and spiritual traditions, she has little context to make sense of her abilities. Only with Ma-ma-oo does she feel recognized and understood rather than seen as a freak, which is why her grandmother's death is so catastrophic for Lisa. Ultimately, Lisa seems to learn that she is never truly alone, eventually experiencing contact with Uncle Mick and Ma-ma-oo from the other side.
