Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Firekeeper’s Daughter, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Justice
Generational Trauma and Bigotry
Ceremony, Pride, and Healing
Love, Honesty, and Respect
Coming of Age
Family and Community
Summary
Analysis
Levi and Mike enter and stoke the fire with a small log. Then, Daunis says she doesn’t trust Levi, so she’ll need Mike to assure her that Jamie will be safe. She hisses at Levi that she found Dad’s scarf, so she knows he’s a liar. Mike tells Daunis to let him unlock her chain while Jamie lies down on the bed. Daunis feigns relief, but her shock is real when Mike says that Daunis is awfully concerned about a guy she cheated on—he knows she had sex with Grant at Shagala. Mike thinks it was consensual. Jamie plays along and acts hurt, but Levi is genuinely upset that Daunis “cheated.” Mike explains that Grant won’t let him date during hockey season, but Grant has sex with lots of women, including Robin and Daunis.
Though Daunis is acting here, it’s true that discovering Dad’s scarf showed her that Levi isn’t trustworthy. Keeping the scarf from her was a very personal insult, and it showed her he doesn’t truly care about her happiness. Then, when Mike insinuates that Daunis had consensual sex with Grant, it highlights how powerful Grant is in this situation. As he noted to Daunis, security footage will make it seem like she went willingly; video can’t convey that she was coerced and then raped. Mike also confirms that Grant likely raped Robin, too, as it seems plausible that he habitually rapes women and goes out of his way to discredit them and make it look consensual.
Themes
Mike is clearly pleased. He says he’ll stay with Jamie while Levi takes Daunis to their meth lab. Turning to Jamie, Daunis winks and apologizes for her “stupid mistake.” She hopes Jamie realizes she’s telling him again that Levi is the weakest link. This is exactly what she hoped would happen: she can deal with Levi, and she’s made Mike feel powerful. Mike says something bad will to happen to Jamie if Levi isn’t back in two hours, but Daunis remains privately gleeful.
In Daunis’s understanding, her close relationship with Levi is an asset: she’ll know exactly how to try to talk him out of hurting her and Jamie, and hopefully she’ll be able to talk sense into him. The question, then, is whether Mike will remain true to his word—he hasn’t proven himself trustworthy over the course of the novel.
Themes
