Chapter 11
“ ‘Xavier is sniping behind your line too now and might mistake you for a bloody Fritz!’ Everyone laughs and Elijah laughs and talks with them. I do not laugh out loud.” (119)
Why is Xavier constantly laughed at? Is Xavier considered as a weak solider among the other Canadians, or are they simply jealous of him? Why does Elijah seem to always direct his jokes toward Xavier? Is he jealous because Xavier is the better sniper, or is he trying to make himself look better? Do the other solider not like Xavier because of his weak English speaking ability? Does Elijah want to feel more Canadian than Native?
Chapter 12
“At first it was less an idea than an image that came late at night while I sat alone by my fire in my little askihkan, the thought of me catching him and keeping him like a pet.” (132)
I wonder why Niska is attracted by the white man. One of reasons could be that she hasn’t had much contact with other men, and therefore was quickly fascinated with a sight of him. Another reason might be the desire to compete with him. Niska and the white man are both trappers and Niska believed she was the better one. As a result Niska eventually built a stronger relation with this man, as she tried to out-duel him.
Chapter 13
“…although I am a fine shot too. As fine as Elijah. But I don’t have the killing instinct for men” (138).
It’s interesting how Xavier, the strongest sniper, is startled with the idea of killing of a human. As a Native he’s been hunting his entire life and over the year developed an instinct to kill, yet Xavier is unable to apply this skill to humans. Even if he had all the practice in hunting, murdering a human is definitely a completely different task. Here we see how the character of Xavier differs from Elijah.
Chapter 14
“I was dreaming there was a flock of Whiskeyjacks… They were pecking at something dead” (109)
This line is clearly some form of foreshadowing, since we know from the beginning of the book that Elijah does not make it out of the war, and is most likely dead.
Chapter 15
“I know that it is much more than medicine. Much more” (54)
Xavier is realizing that Elijah is changing and is not the same person he was before. Throughout the war, Elijah has been slowly attempting to take morphine. Eventually this one-time thing became an addiction. Xavier is having a difficult time accepting this situation. Elijah is like a brother to Xavier and seeing someone you care so much going down a path that will ultimately lead to pain is definitely tough. On the other hand, Elijah sees morphine as an escape from the horrors of the war and is unable to see his growing problem. This is understandable since conditions of the war will impact anyone negatively.
Uriel S 