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Indian Horse Themes

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The novel Indian Horse, by Richard Wagamese, depicts the societal injustices done to the Native Americans in the 1960s. The protagonist, Saul, endures an arduous journey that extends throughout his life. At the beginning of his life, he lived with his native family, only to get ripped away from them by an atrocious residential school. The horrid residential school, St. Jeromes, inflicted detrimental damage upon Saul, physically and emotionally. Saul was able to escape the confines of the school through hockey. His passion for hockey dissipated his problems and took him far in life. Throughout the novel, Saul continuously gets knocked down, but he eventually finds himself and his purpose through extensive healing. In 'Indian Horse,' Wagamese …show more content…

Jeromes, and gave him a family. His sheer dedication to the sport enabled him to succeed in many aspects of life, which he ultimately achieved. However, his hockey experience turned bitter once prejudice became ubiquitous throughout his games. A game of sportsmanship, competitiveness, and love became a game of hate and racism, all due to Saul's Native American roots. Saul created a hockey "family" with his Native American team that allowed him to endure and embrace prejudice for an extended period of time. The team provided so much support to each other that they "never gave a thought to being Indian. Different. We only thought of the game and the brotherhood that bound us together off the ice." (113). Eventually, Saul expanded his horizons beyond his team, which caused him to spiral out of control mentally and physically. He began experiencing prejudice without the support of his team, which led to his breaking point. He was lost and began to acquire bad habits while giving up his passion for hockey. During his spiral, he "discovered that being someone you are not is often easier than living with the person you are. I became drunk with that." (195). Through a process of tremendous struggle, Saul eventually came to his senses and decided to go on an immense journey of healing. Through this journey of pondering and reconnecting with Native roots and biological family in a spiritual manner, Saul filled the empty void within

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