There are many instances in the novel that are examples of bullying. Explore the concept of bullying and make parallels to real life situations.
According to many websites, including google, the definition of bullying is to "use superior strength or influence to intimidate (someone), typically to force him or her to do what one wants." In Richard Wagamese's novel, Indian Horse, Saul, the main character is constantly bullied by the priests and nuns at St. Jerome's residential school. When he first arrives there, the nuns tell him that "At St. Jerome's we work to remove the Indian from our children so that the blessings of the lord may be evidenced upon them." (Wagamese 46). So, the nuns say themselves that they are going to force the native-ness out of the children, no matter what. Actually, before the nuns say that, a nun named sister Ignacia beat a young boy to the floor with a paddle, since he was protesting against them turning him against his native roots. So yea, the nuns and priests are bullies. They take great pleasure in beating, raping and humiliating the children so they can become "children of god". It's practically the same as a kid in school bullying another for their lunch money, or for the victim to fear them. The bully would say intimidating things, or even beat the victim until they conform to the bully's wishes. It practically identical to it.
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Consider Wagamese’s use of the first person narrator. What is the impact of having Saul of a narrator? What are some of the negative and/or positive aspects of first person narrator. Why do you think Wagamese chose to write in first person?
Having Saul narrate the story allows the readers to truly understand how he feels, since Wagamese got in the mind set of his character, and explained how it really would have been for someone in Saul's position. For example , when Saul was explaining how he felt about St. Jerome's as a child, it let everyone understand how he was feeling and how it really was there for him. It also lets you see Saul's surroundings in his own eyes, meaning that the reader fully understands what it was like to be Saul. It lets you understand his thoughts, opinions on others and how he perceives things in general. I think Wagamese decided to write this novel in first person because he wanted readers to understand what it was actually like for children living at that time, and also how they grew up and learned how to cope with the trauma they faced. It was an eye opener to read for sure, especially having to see what it was like back then out of the eyes of someone who was way too young to be experiencing traumatic events like this in their lifetime. |