Joseph Boyden's Three-Day Road

No matter where we live, it is no wonder that different people experience different levels of achievements and relatively different kinds of evaluation by other people in every area in life. Most people want the evaluation towards themselves to be more favorable than the one towards others. In most cases, these values in the process of evaluation are viewed in a more honorable manner. On the contrary, these values can be hated by others, which defines as jealousy as a feeling of being fearful of being displaced by a rival. The book, “Three Day Road” by Joseph Boyden, manifests a great theme of jealousy between both protagonists, Xavier and Elijah, who play their roles as the snipers during the First World War. The story demonstrates a bitter act of jealousy by whom the spotlight shines upon; jealousy of fame. As many would agree, based on the evidence from the story, jealousy is a harmful act which has negative influences on human relationships, emotional stability, and human nature.

-There is a focus on storytelling as a means of healing: "It is the story of my childhood. Now I tell it to you, Xavier, to keep you alive."(35)

The book named Three Day Road by Canadian author Joseph Boyden depicts real Canadian historical events during the first World War. The story of war and violence is told through the eyes of Xavier, who is a Cree boy, and who volunteers for the war. Xavier’s very close Cree friend Elijah, who he has grown up with, has also volunteered for the war. A lot of the book is about their adventures as children and also about their circumstances during war as Cree men. The other parts of the book are told by Niska, Xavier’s aunt who had raised both Xavier and Elijah in the wilderness. Niska throughout the book talks about her past life as a windigo killer, and the hardships she experienced that in return, shaped her into the strong woman she has become.

Ruth Hegarty’s 1999 autobiography,” Is that you, Ruthie?”, Illuminates the trials and tribulations that were experienced by Aboriginal families under the 1897 Aboriginals Protection and the restriction of the Sale of Opium Bill. “The Act” encouraged Aboriginal Families onto reserves such as Cherbourg which in turn created a sense of entrapment in these camps as well as various Employment blunders that are still being reported on today.

It is believed that the feeling of pain is felt at its strongest when it is inflicted by the ones that are cared for the most. In the novel Three Day Road, this statement comes to life as Joseph Borden presents the idea that although the act of betrayal may have a morally negative impact, the results can lead to strong personal development. The story is set during the times of the first World War following from the point of view of a Cree boy named Xavier. His journey is seen through the horrors of war while he is accompanied by his best friend, Elijah. Xavier is released from war as an amputee and addicted to morphine, struggling to survive the three day paddle home. The chapters are intertwined with the narration of xavier’s aunt

Throughout history, aboriginal peoples have suffered from different unfair treatments based on their culture. Starvation, separation, denied from their culture were very common situations that would happened to them. “One Native Life” and “Martha of the North” are perfect examples of autobiographies were the Aboriginal peoples and their culture mistreated. Although Richard and Martha in “Martha of the North” both had traumatic and difficult life experiences, the protagonists’ culture were not handle in the same way. While Richard was denied from his culture by his nonbiological family, Martha’s culture was never contradict by her own family.

Many Aboriginal populations have been using storytelling as a way of communication for centuries. Storytelling is used on a day to day basis whether it be reading a story to kids or telling friends about an experience. The importance of storytelling is highlighted constantly throughout the book Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden and the entire story itself is a recollection of memories. Niska tells stories of her past to warn and teach Xavier. Xavier tells stories of his haunting and innocence shattering experience at war to help him heal. Elijah tells stories about his life before and during the war as an attempt to maintain what is left of his aboriginal culture and to heal himself by reminding himself of his achievements and what he has proudly accomplished . Storytelling plays a significant role in the novel by teaching and helping to heal the characters.

After this time, many atrocities occurred, such as the fact that Aboriginals were often killed for sport, and massacres such as Myall Creek were occurring, where 28 Aboriginal men, women and children were murdered near Myall Creek Station in 1838. There was also the problem of the Stolen Generation, when Aboriginal children were forcibly taken from their homes to be raised as though they were white. It was only recently in 2008, that Kevin Rudd, the Prime Minister of Australia at the time, apologised for the actions that the government had undertaken. In another apologetic move, Prime Minister Paul Keating delivered a powerful speech regarding the fact that Aboriginal Communities were still segregated despite the fact that laws had been changed a number of years ago. This shows that the idea of atonement by Australia is quite a new topic. Does this prove the challenges that Aboriginal’s faced nearly 200 years ago are still present in today’s society? It was enough to force the Aboriginal men, women and children to begin act in support of their rights.

Noel Pearson’s speech ‘an Australian history for us all’ discusses his approach to trying to solve some of the most systemic problems facing Australian Aboriginals today. The speakers are successful in understanding the ideas and values of the speech. Through the uses of various language techniques and context, Pearson’s speech details the struggles of the relationship between the first European settlers and Aboriginal Australians.

Upon finishing Three Day Road I find myself in an almost state of shock from the concluding events of the story. This is due to the fact that I would not have guessed that Xavier would be the cause of Elijah’s death, especially under the circumstances in which Elijah was in turn attempting to kill Xavier. Moreover, this caused some disbelief on my end as the pair appeared to be the perfect friends from what we learnt starting from their relationship when they were kids. One can see this through how the two worked together and taught the other the information they were lacking. For instance, Elijah taught english and Xavier taught hunting. In addition to this, I personally feel that Three Day Road adequately represented the discrimination and

In Richard Wagamese’ novel, Medicine Walk, he narrates the journey of a distanced father and son who are searching for an understanding, love and forgiveness. Wagamese portrays this by using clever humour, authentic dialogue, and outstanding storytelling skills. Medicine Walk clearly illustrates the story of a father’s redemption through storytelling and of a son finding connections to the world through his family’s past. The novel brings us along a journey into the past recounting Eldon’s life story, Franklin’s journey towards acceptance, and the connection they form together which was never expected. Reclaiming the absence of personal history affected them and changed the way they live. By doing so, they learned to see themselves in the history

The Australian Indigenous community hold extremely significant corrections to the land of Australia, of which they refer to as ‘Country.’ Indigenous people acquire deep meaning from the land, sea and the countless resources derived from them. This special relationship has formed for many centuries. To them ‘Country’ is paramount for overall wellbeing; the strong, significant, spiritual bonds embody their entire existence. Knowledge is continually passed down to create an unbroken connection of past,

An individual’s identity is an ever changing composition of a person’s aspirations, beliefs and morality. Identity change is often influenced by many aspects of an individual’s life, but individuals must always return to their roots in order to stay true to their morality. This internal struggle over one’s identity is successfully illustrated in the characters of Three Day Road. In the novel, Joseph Boyden vividly recounts the journey of two Native Canadian soldiers, Xavier and Elijah, who struggle with identity loss from the adversity of the Great War. Through their harrowing experiences from the battlefield, they experience a dissipation of morals which is only recovered in Xavier, the sole survivor, through Niska’s stories of her past, his own past, and of the

The piece is classified as Aboriginal Australian literature. It was published in the 1960’s. The purpose of the text is to give hope in a new beginning after the events involving the racial tension between the Aboriginals and the white settlers. The poem is directed to the Aboriginal people of Australia who suffered from these events

Throughout the novel Three Day Road, by Joseph Boyden, the author takes readers on a journey through the brutality of war and the horrors of trench warfare during WWI. After Oji-Cree Xavier Bird, and his best friend Elijah Whiskeyjack are forced to join the army to help fight for the Southern Ontario Rifles Battalion, their reactions differ. Elijah is a curious young man who is excited to experience the rush of war and adrenaline of trench warfare. He is eager to fight for his country and to eventually come home and be recognized as a brave hero. However, Xavier has a much different perspective on war. He would prefer to stay home and live in the bush with his Aunt Niska hunting moose, and snaring small game. Although, he realizes that he too must go to war to protect his best friend Elijah from the dangers of the battlefield. After being at war for several months, tension begins to build between Xavier and Elijah due to Elijah’s strange liking for killing the enemy, and his strong addiction to morphine. Xavier soon realizes that he and Elijah are not the same people when they left for war several months prior and that their lives will be affected dramatically because of their changing personalities. Eventually, Xavier realizes that his best friend Elijah has become a wendigo and that he must do something to destroy the evil that builds inside of Elijah. Xavier truly finds difficulty with finding a way to appropriately stop Elijah, but knows that sooner or later, Xavier must become the next wendigo killer. Three Day Road is a novel which presents many secondary themes to the reader such as racism, friendship, and addiction. However, the primary theme in the novel is the impact of war on the overall human condition which is presented through the characters Xavier, Elijah and Aunt Niska.