Tracks By Louise Erdrige

The novel “Tracks” written by Louise Erdrige is a very engaging, spiritual and powerful story, as it pictures native American culture and their life on reservations at the turn of the 20th century. “Tracks” focuses on a story about a group of Indians living on a reservation in North Dakota in the early 1900s. This group of Indians is four Anishinaabe families who live close to the fictional city of Argus. “Tracks” rotates between two narrators, Nanapush and Pauline; Nanapush is a tribal elder and Pauline is a young girl who is of mixed heritage and also very jealous of Fleur, which leads to her not always being fully accepted in the group. Through this narrative, Erdrige creates a world where these four families are very closely connected and

“Even though she was good looking, nobody dared to court her because it was clear that Misshepeshu, the water man, the monster, wanted her for himself” (11). This is the reason why the rest of the people believe that she has a connection to the lake. The first time she almost drowns, two men save her, but then they mysteriously go missing and no one sees these men ever again. “The first wandered off and the other, Jean Hat, got himself run over by his own surveyor’s cart.” (10) This makes the rest of the reservation very suspicious, which is why the next time Fleur Pillager drowns, no one is willing to help her in fear of themselves going missing. Since no one chooses to save her during the second drowning, Fleur washes up on the lake shore, and another man named ‘Many Women’ finds her: “You take my place” she hissed.” (11.) After living in fear for many years, Many Women drowns in his own bathtub. Now the people living in the reservation are sure that Fleur has placed a curse on this man and soon Fleur is chased out of the reservation. Perhaps these trials, such as isolation, irrational fear and a near-death experience, is what strengthens her as a character. Shortly moving to Argus, Fleur lives independently and does not let men intimidate her. For example, she participates in the poker games with the men at the butcher shop, and even beats them at

The aforementioned character Nanapush becomes a father figure to Fleur after she loses her immediate family. After losing her family to Tuberculosis, Fluer is left alone in the freezing winter. Nanapush rescues her and takes her in to care for her. Not only does he eventually become like a father figure to Fluer, but he also becomes like a grandfather to her daughter Lulu. It is perhaps because of this profound bond that he is able to help narrate her story. Fluer looks up to him and is very fond of him; this is a nice change after there have been so many men in her life who have negative impacts on