Differences In Nerburn's Neither Wolf Nor Dog

While white people and Native American people may live in close quarters their cultures and ways of life are in conflict. Life inside the reservation is very different from life around them because many Native American people still hold true to the daily rituals and ways of their ancestors while also attempting to adapt to modern life. This creates strife between the Native Americans who hold dear their deeply-rooted history and the white people who laugh in it’s face by using the Native American people and their traditions as mascots for sports teams or the butt of a joke. This tension is seen in Nerburn’s Novel “Neither Wolf Nor Dog” with a gap in ideology between Kent and Elder Dan. Throughout Nerbun’s “Neither Wolf Nor Dog,” Elder Dan makes

a consistent effort to lessen the ideological and cultural differences between himself and Kent in order to remove the main roadblock between them and finishing Dan’s Book. Elder Dan attempts to remove the cultural differences and points of ideological contention. He becomes closer to Kent by explaining the Native American beliefs and values, sharing personal details of his life, and inviting Kent to take part in his very personal and sacred Native American rituals all for the benefit of his book, which is a collection of his life story and perspective. The first place this is observed is with Dan clarifying Native American culture.

Native American beliefs are vastly different than those of white people.

Kent has spent lots of time around Native American people, and thinks that he understands them and their culture. While Dan seems very critical of Kent’s beliefs, he is usually trying to explain his own. An example of the differences of their different beliefs comes when they argue about parking garages and junk cars. When Dan explains the “Indian Way” of not letting anything go to waste, he says to Kent, “Just because you have everything scrubbed down and in-order doesn’t mean anything. What is bigger trash, a junk car or a parking ramp? We can tow the junk car away. The parking ramp has to be torn down with bulldozers and wrecking cranes” (Nerburn 76). Dan is frustrated with Kent’s comment about his messy yard, so he explains the Native American belief on the longevity of possession and how Native American people only see something as ‘junk’ when it does not pose a purpose to them. This is an attempt by Dan to clarify how Native American’s see things, and phrase it in a way Kent would understand. Dan could have easily ignored Kent in this situation, but because Dan wants to accept and work with Kent, Dan is patient and explains his beliefs. We also see this when Dan explains how Native American culture is often oversimplified when he says “[...] it makes me smile to see white people wearing Indian jewelry. Because to most of America, that’s all we are. Just jewelry on the American culture. It’s our job to be bright and colorful” (Nerburn 120). Dan is explaining to Kent how he is frustrated with Native American culture being reduced to the point where all they stand for to most people is a turquoise necklace around some white person’s neck. This is frustrating to Dan because his entire culture is being reduced to a material item or an icon. He explains this to Kent to show him how his culture is being

marginized.

Dan shares personal details through Nerburn’s “Neither Wolf Nor Dog” in an effort to become closer to Kent, and to demonstrate his trust for him. We see this when Dan and Grover sing a song that Dan wrote for Kent. Dan explains this to Kent when he says “I made it when I knew you were coming [...] I wrote it when I knew I wanted to speak. I went to my hill and spoke to my grandfathers. They gave me that song” (Nerburn 138). Dan is exposing a very personal detail about himself by singing a song for Kent in this exchange. This shows how much Dan works fot for Kent’s respect and trust. He is trying to level with him and demonstrate his efforts. Another place where we see this is in Dan including Kent in his personal life. Dan knows nothing about Kent yet as soon as he meets him, he essentially takes him along for the next few weeks. They go everywhere and do everything from meeting Dan’s friends, to going on road trips, even going to remote places to pray. Dan shows Kent that he trusts him and wants to make an effort to include him by bringing him along. Taking in an unknown stranger to this extent is uncommon, but Dan doesn’t seem phased. The more time they spend together, the better it will be for the project in the end.

Another example of Dan bridging the cultural and ideological gap between himself and Kent is the effort Dan makes to invite Kent into his rituals. The rituals performed by traditional Native Americans are very personal and not often shared. In fact, Dan mentions in a few places in the book that he usually partakes in these rituals alone. Inviting Kent into a ceremony or ritual is a very important symbolic gesture, it shows how much Dan would like to trust and be understood by Kent. The first place we see this is when Dan offers Kent the ceremonial pipe. Dan offers the tobacco simply by saying, “Here.” Kent continues with, “There were just the two of us. It was a private, intimate act; he did not have to offer it if he didn’t want to. I took the pipe” (Nerburn 39-40). After Kent hesitates, not wanting to seem like a ‘wannabe Indian,’ he finally takes the pipe. He knows how sacred and intimate such an offering is and he did not want to waste the opportunity. Dan makes this effort to show that he respects Kent enough to include him in such a sacred act, and wants him to feel included in his life. We see this again in the climax of the book when Dan and Kent have an intense prayer to the four directions. This is the ultimate gesture of respect by Dan and while Kent is hesitant during the process, the connection between them that prevails as a result of the session is very much worth the effort. During the prayer, Dan says, “There is no time for fighting. Our anger must be buried. If I cannot bury mine, it will be for my children to bury theirs. [...] We are prisoners of our hearts, and only time will free us” (Nerburn 316). Dan wants to put their troubles behind them. In the 300 or so pages leading up to this, the tension is there no matter how hard Dan and Kent try to work it away. But this is seen as the final moment of tension. Dan is letting go of any prejudice that comes between himself and Kent. A few passages later during a ‘rebirth’ after Dan relives all of his prejudice. Dan says to Kent, “Give me your hand. We are brothers. You are my son. I pass to you my vision, even though I cannot pass to you my knowledge” (Nerbrun 317). This is the ultimate gesture by Dan. He lets go of the history of the inhumane treatment suffered by his people and his own experience with intolerance. At this point, Dan and Kent are extremely close. Dan has eliminated all contention and ideological strife. As a result of this, they can harmoniously work together to finish the project.

All of these examples of Dan bringing in Kent show that he trusts Kent and understands that they must overcome the initial awkwardness that arises from their differences in their customs and ways of life. Throughout Nerbun’s “Neither Wolf Nor Dog,” Elder Dan makes a consistent effort to lessen the ideological and cultural differences between himself and Kent in order to remove the main roadblock between them and finishing Dan’s Book. After Dan’s constant effort to get along with Kent, the resolution is peaceful. Kent gets his truck fixed and gets to go home. They discuss the next steps for the project peacefully. Dan’s attempts to close the gap between himself and Kent pay off in the end. While the lives of Dan on the reservation and Kent off the reservation may be very separate, they overcome the obstacles to be able to work together as one.