Summary Of The Red Convertible By Louise Erdrich

“The Red Convertible,” written by Louise Erdrich, depicts the story of the Lamartine brothers. The story begins Lyman and Henry Junior buying a red convertible and having the time of their life driving around the country then finally staying in Alaska with a girl they had met earlier in their trip. When the brothers decided to drive back, Henry was enlisted into the army. After his return, the Lamartine family saw a change in Henry. Henry’s character changes from an outgoing, energetic male to becoming silent and conservative. Before Henry leaves for war the reader can see his spirited personality through his actions. The reader first sees this in his character when he offers a girl, Susy, a ride back home to Alaska. After dropping her off, her family invites them to stay and they feel at home there. Before they leave Susy tells the “‘You never seen my hair” (307). Henry reacted by telling her to jump on his shoulders. He then spins around laughing and making silly comments, such as “I always wondered what it was like to have long pretty hair” (307). It was with these images of

Henry that the reader was able to see his free spirit

Lyman says, “he was quiet, so quiet, and never comfortable sitting still but always up and moving around…[Before] he’d always had a joke,…now you couldn’t get him to laugh” (308). With these descriptions the reader was able to see a drastic change in his character. Henry goes from always having a conversation and telling jokes to staying silent and never expressing any of his thoughts. The war in Vietnam and his experiences changes his overall perspective of life; a life and world in which he is terrified of now. At the end of the story the a small the reader is able to see a fun side of Henry, but that small glimpse soon ends when Henry decides that this world is too much for him to handle and he jumps into the dangerous current of the