While Joseph Boyden 's Three Day Road is an exploration of the horrors of the Great War, it is as much a tale of homeland horrors. The stories Niska tells Xavier point to the devastation wrought by residential schools, racially motivated sexual violence, and government-sanctioned genocide all underscore historical violence. The bridge which Boyden uses to compare the violence of the homeland and that with the Great War is the figure of the windigo, a cannibalistic monster which roams both the frigid bush (44) as well as the devastated, crater-filled warzone of France (349). The novel’s emphasis on precognition, the genealogical destiny of windigo-killers, and the metaphoric nature of the Windigo enforces Niska 's explanation to Xavier that …show more content…
The windigo narrative is a tool used by Boyden to create a threshold between fiction and reality with the use of symbolism. In Joseph Boyden’s Three Day Road, the windigo narrative symbolically represents the loss of control over the self. Xavier and Elijah are transformed into a monstrous condition. Both are dependent at some point on morphine, as the windigo is dependent on flesh. This is a result of the extreme conditions imposed by the First World War. This key element of choice and consequence for actions taken is the main critique of Boyden on World War I, crossing the line from literary fiction to critique of factual …show more content…
Violence and addiction are too often the realities of modern American Indians and the generations of families before them, stretching all the way back over a hundred years. Xavier says, “We all fight on two fronts, the one facing the enemy, the one facing what we do to the enemy.” Destiny/determinism/free will. Nishka and Xavier’s storytelling are not only a , but also a reassessment of the past in order to deal with the present in the context of an exploitative
Inventing the Savage: The Social Construct of Native American Criminality. Luana Ross. Austin: University of Texas Press. 1998.
In the novel, Three Day Road, the three main characters, Elijah, Niska and Xavier are Cree Indians. They are Native Americans that do not rely on Europeans and make their living by hunting in the bush. They are maintaining their culture and identity after the the Europeans come as before. However, Elijah and Xavier are volunteering in the First World War. They are losing their identity gradually in ways of culture, status, power, thinking, beliefs, etc. Xavier and Niska try to maintain their culture but Elijah wants to get rid of it totally.
The book opens "Nous sommes tours Sauvages," which translates to "We are all Savages." It's a fitting way to begin a book chronicling the story of Major Robert Rogers and his rangers journey, Native American slaughter, and return home. In White Devil: A True Story of War, Savagery, and Vengeance in Colonial America, author Stephen Brumwell depicts a well researched, unbiased image of: war, hardship, courage, savagery, vengeance, and survival. Brumwell wants to show his readers an image of the true nature of war and all the trimmings that goes along with it. There has never been a war where atrocities were not committed. Further more, there has never been a war where the atrocities were not committed by all sides, to one extent or another. This war was no different. This compelling read draws from a broad range of primary sources, including Rogers' Journals, contemporary newspaper accounts, the letters and remembrances of Rogers' surviving Rangers, and several generations of Abenaki oral history.
Through this essay I plan to analyse 3 short stories from Tim Winton’s book ‘The Turning’. The 3 short stories I have chosen are long, clear view, Immunity and damaged goods, through these short stories I will be focusing on the themes for each of them and seeing if these stories in some way link together through theme or story.
In three dynamic pieces of literature, the desperate yet hopeful characters gallantly endure the struggles of achieving their dreams as they experience the pain of desolation and the life-fulfilling happiness of a friendly companion. Through hostile resentment, the intense repulsion created by generations of territorial disputes tears apart two vengeful foes, Ulrich and Georg, in Saki’s captivating tale. Whereas in Remarque’s gory war novel, the pure terror of battle brutally slaughters the once innocent minds of soldiers as they undergo changes in their heart and soul within themselves. Although impervious to the influence of the reclusive residents tied to the ranch, as they quest for their shared aspirations, George and Lennie forge an invincible friendship in Steinbeck’s calamitous novelette.
According to Joseph Boyden, "They lived in the mud like rats and lived only to think of new ways to kill one another. No one is safe in such times, not even the Cree of Mushkegowuk. War touches everyone, and windigos spring from the earth"(49). For those who think that joining a war is an opportunity for adventure and excitement, they are wrong. In reality, it is the opposite with life and death on the line due to unnecessary slaughter between human beings because they cannot solve their own conflicts. This devastating topic is told by Joseph Boyden’s novel "Three Day Road" by two different protagonists sharing their own adventures and their conflicts. The protagonist Xavier and antagonist Elijah experience bloody warfare ability to cause havoc. They begin to understand that bloody warfare can make them physically and mentally draining over time because how it changes a person personality making them corrupt with intent to become a windigo themselves like Elijah did, striving to kill another human being as their only goal for survival. As humans, Joseph Boyden is reflecting that if the readers were Xavier or Elijah themselves place in that unstable environment filled with diseases and distraught. We would experience the same kind of suffering Elijah and Xavier had to go through.
After delivering Santiago two stones for his journey, Melchizedek tells him the story of the wisest man in the world, who asked a visitor to his beautiful palace to carry a teaspoon of oil throughout the grounds. Upon the boy’s return, he asked what he had seen, but the boy had been too focused on not spilling the oil that he had failed to notice any of the marvels around him. “The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon.” (Coelho, 32) This quote symbolizes the contribution from.
Symbolism In "The Things They Carried" In Tim O'Brien's story "The Things They Carried" we see how O'Brien uses symbolism in order to indirectly give us a message and help us to connect to what the soldiers are thinking and feeling. During a war, soldiers tend to take with them items from home, kind of as a security blanket. The items they normally take with them tend to reveal certain characteristics of their personality. Henry Dobbins is the guy who loves to eat, so he made sure he took some extra food. Ted Lavender was the scaredy cat of the group, so he carried tranquilizers with him.
Although the work is 40 years old, “Custer Died for Your Sins” is still relevant and valuable in explaining the history and problems that Indians face in the United States. Deloria book reveals the Whites view of Indians as false compared to the reality of how Indians are in real life. The forceful intrusion of the U.S. Government and Christian missionaries have had the most oppressing and damaging effect on Indians. There is hope in Delorias words though. He believes that as more tribes become more politically active and capable, they will be able to become more economically independent for future generations. He feels much hope in the 1960’s generation of college age Indians returning to take ownership of their tribes problems.
Although the work is 40 years old, “Custer Died for Your Sins” is still relevant and valuable in explaining the history and problems that Indians face in the United States. Deloria’s book reveals the White view of Indians as false compared to the reality of how Indians are in real life. The forceful intrusion of the U.S. Government and Christian missionaries have had the most oppressing and damaging affect on Indians. There is hope in Delorias words though. He believes that as more tribes become more politically active and capable, they will be able to become more economically independent for future generations. He feels much hope in the 1960’s generation of college age Indians returning to take ownership of their tribes problems and build a better future for their children.
Alice Walker is a well-known African- American writer known for published fiction, poetry, and biography. She received a number of awards for many of her publications. One of Walker's best short stories titled "Everyday Use," tells the story of a mother and her two daughters' conflicting ideas about their heritage. The mother narrates the story of the visit by her daughter, Dee. She is an educated woman who now lives in the city, visiting from college. She starts a conflict with the other daughter, Maggie over the possession of the heirloom quilts. Maggie still lives the lifestyle of her ancestors; she deserves the right of the quilts. This story explores heritage by using symbolism of the daughters' actions, family items, and tradition.
The exploration of the west was no walk in the park. There were some bloody and gruesome battles that took place. In Cormac McCarthy’s novel, Blood Meridian, he demonstrates how bloody and gruesome the expansion to the west really was. The author uses the literary theory of Deconstruction to show the reader how dark this era really was. McCarthy demonstrates this by using vivid detail during the fights and battles, while staying historically accurate, with the constant presence between good and evil throughout the novel.
Several symbols in Kate Chopin's "Story of an Hour" create a feeling of comfort, wellness, and wonderfulness within the reader's mind. The first symbol I will speak of is the "comfortable chair" which she sinks into after the news of her husbands' death. Then, I will speak of the open window, which she sits in front of through which she sees many symbols of things that are good. Finally, I will speak of the description of Mrs. Mallard herself and her comfortable situation, which will tie together all the symbols that create the feelings of comfort and wellness in the reader.
Robert Frosts “The Road Not Taken” shows how the choices that one makes now will ultimately effect one’s life later. In addition, one cannot go back and change the choices that one makes had made later in life. The symbolism the speaker uses signals that a choice is permanent and it effects one’s life and the people around one’s life.
Robert Frost is an iconic poet. One of his most well-known poem is titled “The Road Not Taken”. This poem is about the narrator monologue about his travels and choices he faced. It opens up with the view with a fork in the road where two roads take different routes. The narrator must choose which road he will take. The narrator describes his setting vividly of the woods that he is traveling in and the choices he must make, such as “Yet knowing how way leads on to way, / I doubted if I should ever come back.” (14-15). The roads are not only literal choices, but also figurative choices. As they represent all life choices one must make in their lifetime. Frost uses multiple elements within his poem to bring the meaning of it to the reader’s attention. This poem is a metaphor for the choices people must make in their lives and how those choices impact their lives forever.