Taking place on a present day Indian reservation, Louise Erdrich’s novel Love Medicine introduces us to several fiction characters with very real emotional, mental, social and economic issues that are real to today’s society. At first glance, Love Medicine appears to be a compelling story of love, power, and pride. Its’ collection of characters all tell there own story offering different opinions and views. This variety makes the story very interesting. The reader gets to know each character very personally because of all the different views. Many of the same events are described differently by each character, as expected. But this variance allows the reader to draw his/her own conclusions and affords the opportunity to know the personality …show more content…
of everyone. The story is quite confusing, however, with the tremendously large and connected families. It seems, to the reader, that everyone is somehow related. This complexity can be extremely confusing and leaves the reader without a solid frame of reference when reading of other characters. The main character of the novel is difficult to identify. It appears to be June, but she is dead and, in fact, does not even come up very frequently in other conversation. One could argue that there are multiple main characters. They seem to be LuLu, Lipsha, and possibly Nector. All of theses characters come up very frequently and seem to be the most dynamic characters. LuLu is depicted as trying to gain power in every aspect of her life; at home, politically, and among her peers. And as it turns out, she does attain the level of power she aspires to. Lipsha appears secondary and passive until LuLu raises question of his ancestry. This uncertainty sends Lipsha on a journey to find the truth. And ultimately, he comes upon a satisfactory conclusion. Nector also stands out quite a bit, mostly because he is involved with so many people. Nector's transition occurs when he decides to quit Marie and dedicate himself to LuLu. Although, his plan fails when he finds that he does not have the opportunity. Contrary to what the name implies, the main theme of the story seems to be power; power to women. The men in the story are controlled, manipulated, and at times degraded. The most powerful characters in the novel seem to be the elders and the women. They are respected and even feared. This topic is not hidden in any way. Many of the women attest to the fact that they want the men to be subservient to themselves. There is much allegory in the story. For instance, in the beginning, the egg is to symbolize June; hard on the outside, soft and smooth on the inside. June even says that her skin is dry and crackled and calls her coat her "shell". With each character, a theme or reoccurring theme either within one character or conflict of theme between two characters.
Erdrich wastes no time in calling our attention to the novels most important and reoccurring theme: water. Water is violent throughout the novel, the antithesis of water as a life giving element to the Native Americans. The dysfunction of this community is seen in the first chapter, after June meets a gentleman in hopes of having sex with him but he falls asleep, leaving her with her thoughts and the decision to walk across an open ranchland as it snows. When she exits the warm car, a warm environment, she’s in a sense left safety to her death. She walks across the cold, slushy ranchland in thin boots. Her feet and hands become cold and then numb, as one would if walking bare in snow, but she is competent in the snow and knows what direction to head into. She walks into the storm, into what the reader may visualize as a dark whiteness, an oxymoron, perhaps foreshadowing her death of hypothermia before it occurs. Also within chapter one, King and Lynette and their abusive marriage further perpetuate the theme of water when he tries to drown her in the kitchen sink, , with the drowning of Gordie in the last sentence of "Crown of Thorns," and Henry Jr. also become a victim of drowning. Symbolically, water within religion means new birth; however, within this novel it takes the opposite meaning of death. Here water is perverted and distructive, unlike …show more content…
the archetypal water symbol. At the same time, hope is restored in the last chapter as June's son has such hope for the community on the last page, hope beyond Lyman's future casino and beyond turmoil and alcoholism of the novel. Lyman has found his father, found himself, and is ready to re-establish his place in a culture marginalized by religion and "white" society. It is complex and contradictory throughout the novel Erdrich also brings to attention, a less seemingly theme or modernization and tradition by creating conflict among characters. Nector, with much persuasion and support from his wife, completely conquers alcoholism in order to advance as a powerful public figure within the tribal government and the almost modernized community. However, Eli is the complete opposite in being the epitome of tradition. Both embody and live what they struggle urge what the community should reflect. Tradition or Modernization? However, Nector succumbs to the very thing he kicked against. Instead of Lipsha hunting for the medicine to create the love medicine, it reacts differently causing misfortune and the death of Nector. Another common theme among would be that of family ties.
The characters in Love Medicine exhibit distinct personality traits and live their lives accordingly. Yet, very strong ties exist among all the characters—the ties to their common families and heritage. For example, while Albertine has chosen to leave the reservation to study nursing, she is drawn back home upon hearing about her Aunt June’s death. Back on the reservation, Albertine wants to connect with her grandfather, hoping to understand more of her heritage. She asks him questions about his days as an advocate for Indian rights, hoping that something she says will rekindle his memory. The other characters also tell their stories through their relationships to June. Thus, the familial bonds provide a common thread throughout Love Medicine, offering a universal theme to which everyone can
relate. The narration of the stories seems to shift between peripheral first person and central first person. At times the focus of the story is the person telling it. Other times someone else is the focus. Erdrich does a splendid job creating diverse characters. Their actions and unique voices create a strong image of the individual. This, along with very specific descriptions of appearance, builds very strong characters. There is a superfluous amount of drinking in the story and an uncanny frequency of ghosts. The reader must justify the recurring events as part of Indian culture and hopes to find some meaning in these actions. After careful consideration, the reader will often find what he is looking for. The novel is, in this respect, very satisfying. The reader is left fulfilled with the right amount of the desired emotions. Erdrich offers comedy, tragedy, and encouragement. This blend makes the story very moving and evokes deep feelings. Not all of the conflicts in the novel are resolved. Some are left untouched, others show small improvement, and still, others provide the expected happy ending. Such a conclusion invites further speculation when the book is over and leaves a lasting impression on the reader.
However, the easily overlooked similarity is the concept of love. This emotion is merely overlooked. Through this similarity, it becomes evident that love not only is something yearned for by humanity, but also a temptation so strong it can blind us to reality. This blindness can cause the pain of death. Love can cause people to do crazy things, and if you are Lieutenant Cross, even make you treat a pebble as if it were a tongue. Frank’s love for Mary Ann, as innocent as it may seem, exists as a love for a married woman. Love and lust are dangerous beasts, ones that we as readers must be weary of, for if we are not, we may find ourselves sharing the same fate as Frank, death by
Everyday we observe people’s contrasting opinions. Whether it be in politics, school, or in one’s personal life, emotions are often a major factor when it comes to expressing one’s ideas. In writing, an audience must be aware this, and decide for themselves if an author is being bias or equally representing all sides to a situation. In both Into the Wild and In Cold Blood, the authors form distinct opinions about their main characters and believe family structure heavily influenced their future.
In John Updike’s short story “A&P,” the reader witnesses the power of desire. Three girls walk into the store, A&P, in nothing but bikinis. They were looking for “Fancy Herring Snacks” for one of the girl’s mother. The girls were being kicked out by the manger; however, the cashier quits because he desired one of the girl’s attention and tried to be the hero. The poem “The desire of love-power” by Sri Chinmoy, illustrates that desiring something can change a person’s life for the better, or for the worse. This poem, like the short story, explores the power of desire.
Joy's sour temperament and her introspectiveness have both taught her nothing about the world, people, or how to judge a person's character. All of her degrees have done nothing but push her farther into books and farther away from the world. It is Joy's own qualities that put her in the vulnerable situatio
Between the time period they took place in and the plots they tell, the film “Life Is Beautiful,” and the memoir “Night,” have a lot in common. The authors tell of similar events, yet they also manage to make their stories have numerous differences. Some of these differences vary around the way each of these stories are told. Others differences focus on the relationships between
Within every story or poem, there is always an interpretation made by the reader, whether right or wrong. In doing so, one must thoughtfully analyze all aspects of the story in order to make the most accurate assessment based on the literary elements the author has used. Compared and contrasted within the two short stories, “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid, and John Updike’s “A&P,” the literary elements character and theme are made evident. These two elements are prominent in each of the differing stories yet similarities are found through each by studying the elements. The girls’ innocence and naivety as characters act as passages to show something superior, oppression in society shown towards women that is not equally shown towards men.
Point of view is one of the single greatest assets an author can use. It helps to move the plot along and show what is happening from a character’s perspective. An author can make the plot more complex by introducing several characters that the reader has to view events through. The events can then be seen through different eyes and mindsets forcing the reader to view the character in a different light. From one perspective a character can seem cruel, yet, from another, the same character can seem like a hero. These vastly contrasting views can be influenced based on the point of view, a character’s background, and the emotions towards them. The novel Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich showcases some examples of events seen from different points
Many stories talk about relationships, especially the ones between man and woman as couple. In some of them, generally the most popular ones, these relationships are presented in a rosy, sentimental and cliché way. In others, they are presented using a much deeper, realistic and complicated tone; much more of how they are in real life. But not matter in what style the author presents its work, the base of every love story is the role each member of that relationship assumes in it. A role, that sometimes, internal forces will determinate them, such as: ideas, beliefs, interests, etc. or in order cases external, such as society. In the story “The Storm” by American writer Kate Chopin and the play A Doll’s house by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen I am going to examine those roles, giving a special focus to the woman´s, because in both works, it is non-traditional, different and somewhat shocking, besides having a feminist point of view.
Born and raised in a family of storytellers, it’s no wonder that this author, Louise Erdrich became a prolific writer. Louise was born in Little Falls, Minnesota. She grew up in Wahpeton, North Dakota, near the Chippewa Reservation with her mom, who had Native American roots and her dad who was of German descent. Her parents encouraged and challenged her at an early age to read, also to write stories and even paid her a nickel for each one that she wrote. Lorena Stookey states that Louise Erdrich’s style of writing is “like William Faulkner, she creates a fictional world and peoples it with multiple narrators whose voices commingle to shape her readers’ experience of that world” (Stookey 14). Louise writes this moving story “The Shawl” as she is haunted by the sorrows of the generations of her people, the Anishinaabeg. I initially saw this tale as a very complex reading, but after careful reading and consideration, saw it as a sad and compelling story.
In the story “Two Kinds”, the author, Amy Tan, intends to make reader think of the meaning behind the story. She doesn’t speak out as an analyzer to illustrate what is the real problem between her and her mother. Instead, she uses her own point of view as a narrator to state what she has experienced and what she feels in her mind all along the story. She has not judged what is right or wrong based on her opinion. Instead of giving instruction of how to solve a family issue, the author chooses to write a narrative diary containing her true feeling toward events during her childhood, which offers reader not only a clear account, but insight on how the narrator feels frustrated due to failing her mother’s expectations which leads to a large conflict between the narrator and her mother.
There are cultural significances to the idea of “love medicine” and how the idea of love comes in different packages. In addition to these cultural images, the significance of “love medicine” can be seen between many separate characters within the novel, however I am going to focus on the following sets of characters: June and Gordie Kashpaw then Lulu Nanapush, Nector Kashpaw (and Marie Lazarre).
A narrative is constructed to elicit a particular response from its audience. In the form of a written story, authors use specific narrative strategies to position the ‘ideal reader’ to attain the intended understanding of the meanings in the text. Oliver Sacks’ short story The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat is an unusual short story because it does not display conventional plot development; the story does not contain conflict or resolution of conflict. The genre of the story is also difficult to define because it reads as an autobiographical account of an experience Sacks had with a patient while working as a neurologist. Although it is arguable that the narrative is a work of non-fiction, it is nevertheless a representation, distinct from a reflection of the real events. It is a construction, Sacks chose the elements that were included and omitted in the narrative and used narrative strategies to position readers to process the signs in the text and produce reach the dominant understanding. This blurring of truth and fiction is similar to that in the genre of ‘new journalism’. Although, rather than being a journalist writing a fictional piece of journalism, Sacks is a doctor writing a fictional medical analysis. To influence readers’ comprehension of the narrative, Sacks utilised the point of view strategy of subjective narration, atypical in this short story in that a characterisation or representation of Oliver Sacks is the narrator and Oliver Sacks the person is the real author. The story is character-driven rather than plot-driven and regardless of how accurate a depiction of the real people the characters are, they are constructions. Sacks gave the characters of Doctor P. and his namesake admirable and sympathetic trait...
John Updike’s “A & P” and Alice Munro’s “An Ounce of Cure” are stories that show that young love make you crazy, both in how you view the other person and your actions. Both authors write fictional stories from the narrator’s point of view. Updike’s narrator is Sammy and Munro’s is a young girl and both cover what young love made them do. The stories do not coincide, but the narrators’ experiences are similar. In “A & P,” Sammy falls in love at first sight with a girl who walks into the grocery store he is working at. He becomes infatuated with how she looks in her bathing suit. When she and her friends are scolded by the store’s manager for indecency, Sammy impulsively quits his job to be her unsuspected hero. In “An Ounce of
The primitive American culture during the 1950’s has damaging effects on Esther’s mental stability because she discovers that marriage halts career focus and promotes male dominance. Esther is a young woman who aspires to achieve a high standing in society by becoming a renowned writer. However, her motivation to follow her passion is stifled by the other women prevalent in the society. During her internship for the New York magazine, Esther witnesses:
In other works of fiction where the oppressive circumstances of protagonists usually arise from failures of society and within the specific individual there is often an optimism to the extent that it is suggested that progress might eventually lift the individual or mankind beyond the scope of the type of situations depicted. In Washington Square', however, James' depiction of Catherine's tragedy could well be interpreted, at a universal level, as our susceptibility to the manipulative and domineering elements in human nature combined with those factors which drive us with passionate longing for another. Our hopes for an enlightened perspective of Catherine's situation diminish as she confronts an environment of emotional, psychological and motivational disregard and cruelty displayed in numerous situations of dialogue, interviews and conniving. We recognize, however, that Catherine's sufferings are intrinsic to human nature as she is depicted also as a protagonist who displays substance and a willingness to develop her perceptions of human behaviour at the cost of being isolated physically, psychologically and emotionally.