The Windigo In Joseph Boyden's Three Day Road

” (77) Elijah continues to attempt to lose the Cree attributes that separate him from the other soldiers. Although, he clings to his hunting skills, wanting to be acknowledged for his Cree talents as an Englishman. Also, in a way to further separate himself from his culture, Elijah begins to false impressions of Cree culture and other native cultures. After a raid that produces Elijah’s first group of kills, Thompson inquires with the soldiers of their sentiments on their first true taste of war, he says, “‘What do you think of the last days, Whiskeyjack?’ he asks, lighting a cigarette , exhaling and looking t the sky. I can see that Elijah knows exactly what Thompson is asking. Thompson is asking if Elijah likes killing. Elijah considers it for a moment. ‘It’s in my blood,’ he finally says.” (75) Elijah claims that the killing of men is in his blood and gives thompson an unfavourable impression of the Cree culture, driving elijah further away from the way of life Niska has taught him. Finally, nearing the conclusion of the novel, Elijah approaches Xavier with what appears to be a bone from an animal. He then asks Xavier to perform a sacred ritual that is a custom to Niska’s bloodline, one that is originally used to track animals for hunting. But, Xavier is not presented with the shoulder blade of an animal, he asks, “‘Where did you find the shoulder blade of a bear?’ I ask him. Elijah smiles, ‘It is not from a bear. It is German.’” (319) It is this

"The Sniper" places a strong emphasis on the evils of war, and yet paints a vivid image of mankind's qualities and their society. Employing the technique of describing one particular sniper to symbolise a general subject, readers are able to gain a deep insight into the evils of war. In this story, the assembly of setting, contrasting characters and themes of fanaticism and division of loyalties are vital to conveying the horror of war. On the other hand, "The Sniper" also discusses the power of war, depicting it as the decider of life and death for men. Its force is further emphasised when neighbours are turned into enemies under war's influence.

In the novel Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden, Elijah Weesageechak is a very brave character who repeatedly risks his life during the war. Elijah is also a very cruel character; Thai becomes increasingly evident throughout the novel. One example of Elijah being cruel is when he shoots a young girl hiding in a crumpling building. Another example of Elijah's cruelty is when he kills Grey Eyes and Lieutenant Breech so not to get in trouble for being addicted to morphine and for committing war crimes. But then one time that Elijah shows his bravery is when he volunteers to act as bait to draw sniper fire, allowing Xavier to find and kill the sniper.

War is often thought about as something that hardens a soldier. It makes a person stronger emotionally because they are taught not show it and deal with it internally. People say that death in war is easier to handle because it is for the right reasons and a person can distance themselves from the pain of losing someone. However, there is always a point when the pain becomes too real and it is hard to maintain that distance. In doing so, the story disputes the idea that witnessing a traumatic event causes a numbing or blockage of feelings. Rat Kiley’s progression of sentiment began with an initial concern for the buffalo, transforming into an irate killing of the animal, and then ending with an ultimate acceptance of death. These

-The central story is of Niska's early adolescence. It is the winter during which she enters puberty. Her Oji-Cree Anishnabe clan of roughly 30 people still live near Hudson's Bay, in the wilderness. The winter is a harsh one, with few animals to trap and eat. They are reluctantly forced to consume a young hibernating bear, who they regard as a spiritual brother (38). Niska's father, a medicine man and a spiritual leader of the clan, argues that they have no choice but to eat or starve (37). Nothing it should be added, is to be wasted.

At the same time, O’Brien struggles with destructiveness of the conflicting images of violence and peace in death through the juxtaposition of the imagery of the dead man. While “his one eye was shut, the other eye was a star-shaped hole.” The dead man has one shut eye that resembles a peaceful sleep, while the other side is obliterated by the grenade into a star-shaped hole. The image of the star-shaped hole in the dead soldier’s eye represents the hopes that he once had when he was alive: “He hoped the Americans would go away. Soon, he hoped. He kept hoping and hoping, always” (119). Furthermore, “his right cheek was smooth and hairless,” an image of untouched innocence that contrasts with his left cheek, which was “peeled back in three ragged strips,” destroyed by the violence O’Brien inflicts upon it. The juxtaposition of the butterfly that settles on his chin and the fatal wound on his neck, “open to the spinal cord…blood…thick and shiny” illustrate the complexity and ambiguity of the unnaturalness of war, depicted by the image of the dead man’s wrung neck, contrasted with the ironic peace and naturalism of death in the image of the fragile butterfly. These select images are also those that O’Brien chooses to fixate upon and develop throughout the chapter as he struggles to comprehend the moral implications of his actions. The innocence of the “slim, dead, almost dainty young man” is further reinforced when O’Brien describes his wrists as “wrists of a

The two main characters in the novel “Three Day Road” by Joseph Boyden; Xavier Bird and Elijah Weesageechack, have many key differences that are illustrated throughout the novel. Xavier is reserved and visceral, while Elijah is self-assured and talkative. Xavier was raised by his Aunt Niska for the Majority of his childhood, opposed to how Elijah was raised in Moose Factory by nuns at a residential school. These factors hold an important responsibility on their personalities and the way that they think and make decisions. The three key differences between them that are paramount to the story and the themes of the novel are; firstly their respect for their Oji-Cree culture, secondly their respect and love for human life, and lastly their

“Identity is not inherent. It is shaped by circumstance and sensitivity and resistance to self pity,” (Dorothy West). Joseph Boyden’s Three Day Road paints a clear picture of the shaping of the three main characters identity in result of their environment and experiences. Xavier Bird, Elijah Weesageechak and Niska each fight a battle within, alongside the conflict that society brings upon them. With each turn of the page the readers are taken through the agonizing aspects of war, the demoralizing events of Residential Schools and the discouraging experiences of racial discrimination. Countless tales are told within the novel allowing one to fully immerse themself into the excruciating experiences the

Three Day Road shows that extreme situations can result in loss of humanity. This is shown through symbolism. It is also shown through motif. Lastly it is shown through imagery. Joseph Boyden showed these devices through the journey of Xavier, Elijah and Niska.

In general, windigo is an evil spirit that parents use it to scare their children. However, Boyden, in the novel, narrates stories of windigo ownership and windigo killing to show the authority system in the Cree tribe. For example, Niska narrates stories of her father who is a leader of the Cree community and windigo killer. Her father follows these windigo creatures and kills them violently. The police put her father in jail until he dies because of killing windigos.

The two page epigraph at the beginning of Three Day Road does more than simply introduce the story or show a flashback of an earlier time, but is a crucial part that allows readers to fully grasp knowledge of the character development that occurs throughout the novel.

Thread One: The Number Three The number three is one of the most prominent threads in Three Day Road and it relates to the theme of unity. To begin, the number three is exceedingly important to the Cree people as they believe after death is a three-day road to salvation. When a person dies, the aboriginals believe that they will unify with the spirit world, so it is fitting that they would have to travel a three-day road in order to fully unify in this new world. Additionally, characters travel three-day voyages before they cross a new chapter in their life.

After seeing a troop of soldiers pass by his house as a child, he begins to glorify war and death, especially his own. His weapons of choice are primitive and savage: arrows, daggers, and spears. He frequently envisions scenes in which men are brutally stabbed in the stomach, leading to slow and agonizing deaths - the true marker of beauty. As a child

The next subject is the west, the American symbol of autonomy and freedom. The west and its wild, unbridled spirit have been celebrated as an American utopia in literature, lore, song and cinema. Paradise states early on “the stars seemed to get brighter the more we climbed the High Plains. We were in Wyoming. Flat on my back, I stared straight up at the magnificent firmament, glorying in the time I was making” (30). Even the popular music of the time focused on the romantic concept of moving west. In his essay, “Free Ways and Straight Roads,” Lars Larsen notes how in the late 1940s, “Nat ‘King’ Cole’s version of Bobby Troupe’s ‘Route 66’ helped redefine Steinbeck’s grim migrant road as a place of ‘kicks’” (37). However, the west was not exactly the west of Paradise’s dreams. Not only is Sal disillusioned by the mass commercialism of a Wild West festival, but he spends two weeks in a migrant camp in California in abject poverty living on fresh picked grapes before fleeing

The wind is one of the most powerful forces known to man. It can do things that man has been envious of and also terrified of throughout the centuries. It is no wonder why Shelley decided to write a poem of praise in its name. Shelley writes this poem with the speaker being a poet himself frustrated that he can not tell the world the things that he feels the world needs to know. Throughout the poem he continually is describing what the wind can do and what he wishes the wind could do for him.