Motorcycles And Sweetgrass By Drew Hayden Taylor

Life is a journey of discovery and self-improvement, one who does not know themselves, cannot live their life. The book Motorcycles and Sweetgrass by Drew Hayden Taylor follow the self-growth and development of Virgil Second, caused by the actions of his family, and new characters in his life, as he blossoms into a man, connected more to his heritage/culture, with a stronger bond to his family, and a character with goals aspirations and a direction in life.

From the start of the book, it is apparent that Virgil like the rest of the Otter Lake community is extremely disconnected from his culture. As he and the community were recovering from the stripping of First Nations culture due to residential schools, where a whole generation was punished

The close-knit stereotypical family for Virgil, however, is non-existent at the beginning of the book. Where Virgil is distant from his family at an age where Virgil needs that familial bond most, since the passing of his father. Apparently from the start, he and his mother's relationship was on thin ice. The quote, “a latchkey kid with no latch. Or key as most homes in the village were kept unlocked,” (Taylor 27), tells us how Maggie most of the time wasn’t home. Leaving Virgil in a home, previously filled with his grandmother or father but since their passings, without any adult role models to spend time with. Virgil was not close with any uncles or aunts either, as when his Uncle Wayne was watching the funeral service of Lillian take place he wasn’t even certain what Virgil's name was. John’s presence made Virgil show his care for his mother and strengthened the bond between the two, opening Maggie's eyes to the love Virgil had for her. This leads her to make more time for him at the end of the book shown in the quote “No more late nights worrying about “what if” Instead, more television or fishing with Virgil, thinking “whatever” showing the now tight knit bond between Virgil and his mother. Not only does Virgil form a stronger bond with his mother, but out of fear of losing his mother and asking for help from

At the start of the book, Virgil can be seen as a troubled student, barely showing up to class as shown in this quote “He still skipping school? I think so. I have a meeting with his teacher in a couple of days to talk about it” (Taylor 43), and when showing up, physically being there but mentally, disconnected. However, after he and his mom's bond becomes stronger, with him expressing that he cares about his mom and learning about how his mom worries about his academic future, Virgil seems to have found some motivation. With him making an effort to talk with the teacher and writing a final-year paper to seal his graduation. The final interactions with Nanabush still spiral in Virgil's mind, as he continues to ponder about quotes that Nanabush has said to him like “There's no such thing as dead ends, only people who find dead ends'', showing his newfound belief and attention to find the deeper meanings to things. Virgil now after finding motivation, and changing his outlook on life to try and learn now shows his interest in learning more about his identity, through learning about his history and culture. Compared to the beginning of the novel where Virgil lacked any form of motivation at all, at the end of the book, Virgil can be seen asking his uncle Wayne for continued teachings in First Nations martial arts, asking more questions