Fur trade began in the 16th century when fishermen fishing on the banks of Grand Banks off Newfoundland were drying their fish onshore a process that took weeks for they had a huge catch. They came into contact with the Aboriginal people as they were fishing to trade fur from animals they had caught hunting with the metal and clothes from the European people. The Anishnabek people who were also Aboriginal people of what is today Canada were highly skilled in hunting animals especially in winter when their coats were thick, and exchanged them with tools and metals from the Europeans. The French usually ventured into the lands for fur unlike other European nations who usually traded on trading postings that led to the aboriginal people growing fond of the French and were more inclined to trade with them.

The tools and equipment the Aboriginal people acquired from the French changed their lives, and in a world where they had no need for such equipment for their survival it changed to a world that the equipment were a necessity (Dunham, 55). This caused the aboriginal people to change their lifestyles, and the conflicts and misunderstandings increased among the people. The fur trade changed from when it was a source for social and economic advantage into a catastrophic venture. Communal hunting grounds changed into territorial ownership as the fur trade became a venture for profits and the resource started being used for acquiring firearms and food from the Europeans. The Europeans also changed the people’s traditions as they introduced alcohol to the aboriginal people which led to the demoralization of the economy. Conservation was also abandoned as hunting for fur that was only enough to get food for the community changed into hunting for profit gains thereby the people hunted indiscriminately which eventually decimated the beaver population.

The Anishnabek people and economies became undermined by the French Fur trade leaving the Anishnabek in a state of dependency that is evident in recent times. The Anishnabek people were changed by the fur trade and instead of sticking to their ways of lives and economic integrity they changed all their ways became over reliant on the European products (Hafen et al, 66). This changed their ways of lives, and they were more inclined to living the European lifestyles, as opposed to their own. This led to the people being overrun by the Europeans and Europeans invaded their lands and established themselves in their regions. This is evident in the modern times as the areas that were once the home of Anishnabek people are now full of Europeans and other people who own the properties in these areas. The Anishnabek people ended up being marginalized, and they were overrun by the European settlement.

The methodology of the paper will be based on Marxism methodology that is a conflict that arises in a capitalist economy as a result of a contradiction between the highly rich and more advanced members of the society and the minority of private owners who are often referred to as the bourgeoisie (Philips, 77). The two classes engage each other, and the social unrest grows and becomes a fully blown social revolution. The Aboriginal in this case allowed to be absorbed into the capitalism economic situation of the Europeans that later led to the people forming part of the minority Bourgeoisie making the Europeans the highly productive and mechanized lot. This will be the basis for the methodology of the main paper. It is also important the Marx finally asserts that, in the end, the socialism would eventually give way to communism due to advancements in technology and also the productive forces. This methodology will, therefore, try and explain the French fur trade and the Aboriginal people and the resultant changes that have happened to the Anishnabek people and their lands.

This paper will mainly use secondary data as the research cannot be accessed through primary as it is an occurrence of the past. This paper will use the archival materials which give an account of the events and lives of the Anishnabek people in the 16th century. Documents that give an account of the events and documents which will be available from the library will be helpful in giving a view of the Anishnabek people in the 16th century and in modern times and what caused the changes. Discussions and analysis of data that was collected on the Anishnabek people to present will also be important as the changes over the years will help highlight their movements and their activities.

The study is on the tribe and a form of trade that was being conducted in the 16th century and as such it is deemed to have problems. The main problem is the correct account of the activities that happened in that century given that no forms of records were being stored this far back. Lack of primary data to create a base argument from is also a disadvantage so is lack of enough materials in the library on the French fur trade