Saul Indian Horse Sparknotes

Imagine living in a world where the government works to erase your cultural identity from you and your people. Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese, follows the story of Saul Indian Horse, a young Anishinaabe boy who navigates through a racist, unjust system while pursuing his dream. Along the way, he gets put into a residential school where they work to remove his indigenous identity from him which leads to an internal struggle. To overcome this struggle he must return to his indigeneity; this is demonstrated by Saul reconnecting with his ancestors, re-embracing his native language in the form of prayers, and taking part in rituals important to his culture. In order to fully heal as a person, Saul must return to a missing piece of himself, his

Shortly after, he travels to God’s lake to reunite with them spiritually. This connection is very significant as it was one of many things the residential school erased from his indigenous identity. In indigenous culture, it is extremely important to be in tune with your ancestors and community. This is because they believe that a strong relationship with them leads to a secure connection with one’s roots and heritage as it gives them a sense of identity. Moreover, after reconnecting with his ancestors, Saul finally has the support he needs to mourn and heal from all he has been through. With the spiritual presence of his family, he feels their support and finally lets everything he has been holding in

After reconnecting with his ancestors, he feels their support through the northern lights. The northern lights have many beliefs weaved in through generations in the form of legends. As claimed by Manitoba First Nations Education the northern lights are believed to be “spirits of the ancestors celebrating life, reminding us that we are all part of creation,”. As Saul mourns he mentions that the northern lights emerge in the sky, meaning that his ancestors dance around him, reminding him of his Indigenous identity and that they are there to help him along the way. With this newfound support that he needed, Saul grieves for all he has been through, healing. All of the emotions that he had kept bottled up for years finally opened which was an essential thing that needed to happen in order for him to come to peace with everything he experienced throughout his journey. All things considered, once Saul understands that a broken connection with his ancestors is needed in order to heal, he reconnects with them and heals a part of himself that he was not able to do on his