The Change of Two Brother’s Relationship Certain circumstances can change a person for the better or for the worse. In “The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich, she demonstrates how the Vietnam War completely altered a young man’s personality. Two brothers, Henry and Lyman, who has an inseparable bond in the beginning of the story were portrayed also as best friends. The two of them travel everywhere in a glossy, red convertible they bought together during the summer. The red convertible shows the unique connection they have together. As time passes, their relationship quality becomes damaged because of a series of factors, including a war Henry was sent off to. In a person’s life, certain aspects can be a trigger for life altering changes. Henry and Lyman’s relationship experiences dramatic changes from buying a convertible and taking it on road trips, to Henry becoming a unfamiliar face to his family.
In the beginning of the story, the bond between the inseparable brothers, Henry and Lyman is exceptionally strong. On their way to Winnipeg with their pockets full of loose change and wrinkled, green bills of all sorts of value, the two of them fell in love at first sight with a red convertible that had a for sale sign sitting upon the windshield. The narrator states, “The, before we had thought it over at all, the car belonged to us and our pockets were empty” (Erdrich 325). Even though Henry and Lyman were having no intentions of purchasing anything together, especially a