Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese is a powerful and moving exploration of Indigenous identity, trauma, and resilience novel of an Indigenous boy named Saul. The story is set against the backdrop of Canada's dark history of residential schools, where Indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families and communities and sent to schools to assimilate into European culture. The trauma of this experience is woven throughout the story, highlighting the lasting impact of colonial policies on Indigenous communities. As Saul grows up and confronts the legacy of his traumatic past, he is forced to grapple with his Indigenous identity and the impact of colonialism and cultural genocide on his community. …show more content…
Despite the abuse and trauma experienced by Saul and other Indigenous people at residential school, Saul is able to find solace and purpose in the game of hockey, which becomes a central theme throughout the novel. "I had been broken and shattered, but I had gathered my pieces up and come on anyway" (Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese). This quote encapsulates the resilience of Saul through hockey; he is able to tap into his own strength and resilience, as well as the strength and resilience of his Indigenous heritage. Saul's journey is a testament to the strength of the human spirit and the power of cultural identity to overcome adversity. Through his connection to his Indigenous roots, Saul finds the strength to face the challenges of his life and to confront the trauma of his past. "I was Indian. I was Native. I was Indigenous. I was all of those things, and I was beginning to realize that it was a strength, not a weakness. It was something to be proud of, something that gave me strength and resilience in the face of all the terrible things that had happened to me." (Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese). This quote also demonstrates Saul's growing awareness of his identity and the strength he draws from it, despite the trauma he has experienced. It shows his resilience in the face of adversity and his ability to find strength in his culture and heritage. The theme of resilience is explored throughout the novel, as in the ways in which Indigenous people have survived centuries of colonial policies and cultural genocide. Through their connection to their communities and their traditions, Indigenous people have found strength and perseverance in the face of trauma and adversity. This resilience is evident
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.
Indian Horse In the book Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese, Saul gains relationships through community. The Kellys provide Saul a place to call his home and they create a bond beyond just the billet family. Secondly, The land around Saul gives him a sense of family, the land is full of life to encourage Saul to not give up and he's not alone. Lastly, hockey offers Saul love and a feeling of worthiness that he is lacking while being at St. Jerome's Indian Residential School.
As socialization's effects are inevitable, we are constantly influenced by groups. However, regardless of the groups we are influenced by, the one concept that is absolute is our reliance on the sense of togetherness that seldom dissolves. The concept is explored in the novel Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese and the short story "Borders" by Thomas King, both of which emphasize characters who have been influenced by cultural assimilation. Indian Horse is a journey of Saul Indian Horse, a young Indigenous child who lost their family due to assimilation and was forced to attend a residential school. “Borders” is a journey of a Blackfoot mother who desires to visit her daughter in Salt Lake City, separated from her Blackfoot background; both emphasizing
Nathaniel Pauls Mr. Galea ENG2D1 May 29, 2023 From Runway to Reality The Crushing Impact of Hockey on Saul in Indian Horse Hockey has played a significant impact on the lives of Canadians, becoming an essential part of The nation's culture and identity. In Richard Wagamese's novel, Indian Horse hockey plays a vital part in the protagonist of Saul's life. In the novel, Indian horse the author portrays hockey as an escape for Saul when in reality it is the cause of his downfall and Saul losing himself.
Saul Indian Horse once stated “I was at the bottom of that well for a long time. Coming back up to daylight hurt like a son of a bitch” (Wagamese 189). In the novel Indian Horse written by Richard Wagamese and the short story Stolen Words written by Melanie Florence, the relationship between the protagonist and their community is highly valued. Indigenous people often build relationships within their community, allowing them to find self-acceptance and develop as individuals. The protagonist in the novel Indian Horse, Saul, manages to succeed in self-development by connecting with his peers including family, friends, and hockey teammates.
Through the Medicine Wheel, we are reminded of our lifelong journey that is continuous upon birth and living through youth, adulthood and senior years. In Richard Wagamese’s Indian Horse, the protagonist Saul experiences many obstacles which shape and develop his character. Saul’s life can be divided into more than the four stages of life to better understand his journey. Saul’s Life with His Family The time Saul was able to spend with his family was very short due to the effects of the white men.
The detrimental and unfair categorization of people by race, gender and more, commonly known as discrimination, affects many in society both mentally and emotionally. Many instances of this act of hatred occurred among Aboriginal and Native Canadians in the 20th century. However, for a little Native Indian boy stepping onto the rink, this is the norm that surrounds him. Saul Indian Horse, in Richard Wagamese’s “Indian Horse”, faces discrimination head on, where his strengths for hockey are limited by the racial discrimination from the surrounding white ethnicity. Consequently, this racism draws him into a mentally unstable state, where he suffers heavy consequences.
The voices of Indigenous children are unheard and purposely ignored. This is portrayed through the literature of Birdie by Tracey Lindberg and Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese. Despite both apologies from Stephen Harper and Justin Trudeau, the government system to protect First Nations children appears to have detrimental effects on the life of a child. This is proven by young children turning to drugs in order to satisfy their growing pain, family members who abuse their children because they consume high amounts of alcohol, which has a negative impact on the child, and discriminatory behaviour by surrounding communities. To begin with, young children turning to drugs in order to satisfy their growing pain.
When Saul says, “I ceased to be the Zhaunagush. I became Saul Indian Horse, Ojibway kid and hockey player”, it solidifies and represents his dynamic transformation from being an isolated and broken student, to the best hockey player on the team. In addition, this paragraph also pays homage to the value of brotherhood. For the first time since his grandmother died, Saul knows what it's like to have someone he can count on. The passage connects what the reader knows about finding where you belong in life, with our protagonist, who flourishes into a more confident and hopeful
In the Native American culture, oral tradition has proven to be an imperative aspect that contributes to the continuation and spread of their beliefs among future generations. In both Tracks by Louise Erdrich and The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott Momaday, there is a representation of how oral tradition contributes to being Native American. Each novel has its own unique portrayal of this; however, both novels are illustrations of the different ways that oral tradition strengthens one’s feeling of belonging to the Native American culture. In the essay, “The Man made of Words” by N. Scott Momaday, he says that “there is no way in which we can exist apart from the morality of a verbal dimension”. Essentially, he says that a story’s, tradition’s, and culture’s existence is dependent on the verbal telling of it and this is prevalent in the two novels being discussed.
Introduction Young people living in the rural areas all over the world share similar dreams as their urban counterparts, swayed by the images transmitted by the television network and the lyrics of rock and roll music. But, the psychological perspective of an individual being born as a Native American is forced to undergo the chaos and commotions in the quest of finding a place for themselves. Sherman Alexie’s first novel Reservation Blues (1995) centres on the American Dream and the price of success. Written in vivid narrative using chiselled characters, Reservation Blues explores the life of the Native Americans who seek to recover the consequences of the colonisation and forge their lost identity in their own society. A critically acclaimed
Motorcycles and Sweetgrass is a novel that taught me about modern Indigenous values and lives, while being entertaining and engaging to read at the same time. In Motorcycles and Sweetgrass, Drew Hayden Taylor demonstrates that finding balance between culture and modern realities is essential to grow needed familial connections. Hayden Taylor portrays the importance through the literary devices of conflict, setting, and characterization. To begin, Hayden Taylor uses conflict to demonstrate the way perspectives need to change. John’s arrival resulted in person vs person conflict for many of the characters, allowing him to serve as a catalyst for their discovery of balance and sense of connection.
People encounter many obstacles in their lifetimes, obstacles that are too arduous to overcome by themselves. They must find a way to get through these difficulties, and there is always something, or someone, that helps keep them sane through these hard hours. To Saul Indian Horse, the main character of Richard Wagamese’s novel Indian Horse, that obstacle is St. Jerome’s Residential School and the very element that kept him sane was hockey. In the residential school, Saul is abused both mentally and physically, witnessing the continued deaths of his Indian classmates. Fortunately, Saul was able to keep himself sane through hockey.
The Importance of Resilience: It Encourages Healing, Defiance, and Builds Strong Character Everyone has their way of coping with trauma. In Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese, Saul plays hockey to cope with his traumatic experiences. Furthermore, in the book, strangers take a young Ojibway boy from the arms of his deceased grandmother and force him into St. Jerome's Indian Residential School in White River. At the school, Saul is subject to physical and emotional abuse.
Throughout history, there have been many literary studies that focused on the culture and traditions of Native Americans. Native writers have worked painstakingly on tribal histories, and their works have made us realize that we have not learned the full story of the Native American tribes. Deborah Miranda has written a collective tribal memoir, “Bad Indians”, drawing on ancestral memory that revealed aspects of an indigenous worldview and contributed to update our understanding of the mission system, settler colonialism and histories of American Indians about how they underwent cruel violence and exploitation. Her memoir successfully addressed past grievances of colonialism and also recognized and honored indigenous knowledge and identity.