One-minute review: Indian in an American college, being schooled in the ways and ideas of the white man. “Am I Indian or White?” He decides to return home to the reservation for Christmas by hopping trains. Cross country. The contrast between his Indian heritage and the whites’. His love for nature. His people who do not have to talk but welcome him back, not with words or questions, but joining him in the mood of the Indian lodge dance. He is still one with his people.
Comment: Too much rich detail on the differences between the whites and the narrator’s Indian heritage to put in one short summary. His love of and respect for nature. “I am happy. It is beautiful. I am home.”
I look at a sample student essay on the story in the text. It is wooden, organized, dead. Better to begin by brainstorming what I have learned about the spirit of the story. That spirit is the reason for the story. Not its structure, characters or theme in dead prose that contrasts sharply with the words of the story. RayS.
Note: Over the years, I have read hundreds of short stories. In this blog, I am going to summarize as many of them as I can. RayS.
Literature: An Introduction to