Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Marrow Thieves, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Cyclical Histories, Language, and Indigenous Oppression
Family and Coming of Age
Humans and Nature
Trauma, Identity, and Pride
Summary
Analysis
Frenchie's family wakes up early and quickly sets out to work on assigned chores. At lunch, Frenchie sits with Clarence. The young man who took Frenchie's gun wanders over, and Clarence introduces him as his nephew, Derrick. Derrick looms over Frenchie and boasts about how skilled he is until Clarence sends him to get food. Clarence says that Derrick's behavior is normal for his age, and that he's just showing off for the girls in Frenchie's group. Frenchie suddenly feels like he's not hungry and decides to walk the perimeter. Rose jogs up to join Frenchie and asks where he's going, but Frenchie gives her one-word answers. He wonders why things feel so uncertain since he found Dad. Rose stops and asks if Frenchie wants her to come. Frenchie says it's her choice, so she stomps back to the group.
Though Derrick is certainly being a jerk, Clarence is also somewhat correct that Derrick is acting like a normal teen and trying to seem as adult as possible. But Derrick is failing to make it seem like people should consider him an adult, as boasting in front of Frenchie like this is childish. Derrick mostly shows Frenchie that, as his community expands, he'll naturally experience different conflicts that arise simply from being around more people with differing ideas and opinions. At this point, this isn't a comfortable thought for Frenchie.
Themes
When Frenchie returns to Miig and the group at dusk, General is telling Miig about the social dance in the cave later. Frenchie wanders on and knocks at Dad's room. Frenchie sits down next to Dad on the mattress, and Dad asks Frenchie what's going on. Frenchie puts his head in his hands and can't think of what exactly is wrong: they're going to get Minerva, and he found Dad. Dad asks Frenchie what he expects to find here. Frenchie answers that he wants to find Minerva, but when Dad asks why, Frenchie snaps that they're all supposed to look for each other. He asks if Dad tried to look for him and Mitch. Calmly, Dad says he did look. He says that he created this camp so the people in it could all find their communities, but they ended up becoming the community instead.
Frenchie shows here that finding Dad is difficult mostly because Frenchie feels as though Dad abandoned him. While on some level, this may be true—Dad did choose to go—it also shows that Frenchie is fixating on the emotional trauma of the situation, rather than recognizing that Dad had to fight his way out of a residential school and then had no way to locate his family. As Frenchie begins to understand that things aren't all so simple, he'll become increasingly more mature.
Themes
Frenchie realizes that he resents Dad for leaving him with Mom and Mitch. Dad puts his arm around Frenchie and says that if he'd known how fast things were going to go downhill, he never would've left them. Frenchie leans into Dad and admits that he's "done things," and when Dad kisses the top of Frenchie's head, Frenchie feels safe.
Dad's willingness to treat Frenchie a bit like a small kid here by kissing and comforting him shows that Dad understands how uncomfortable Frenchie is right now as he vacillates between child and adult.
Themes
A young man calls Dad and Frenchie to the social and Frenchie hears the drum starting. He hasn't heard drums since he was a child. Dad and Frenchie sit next to Bullet and Frenchie looks around at the community of about 50 people. He thinks that it's too big to be invisible, so they have to find space and defend it. Clarence and Derrick step into the circle with drums, which annoys Frenchie. He gets even angrier when he sees that Rose is smiling and standing next to Derrick. Frenchie remembers that his braid is longer than Derrick's, which makes him a "better Indian."
Here, Frenchie begins to see the positive aspects of being in a larger group: because staying hidden is near impossible, they celebrate whenever they can and defend themselves when necessary. This suggests that there's a lot to gain by living in a community with more than a few people in it, as it at least gives people the illusion of a safe space in which they can celebrate who they are.
Themes
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The drumming starts. Many people, including Wab, Chi-Boy, and Slopper, start to dance in a circle, but Frenchie sits and stews jealously. The next dance is a two-step, and Derrick gives his drum to Tree and then pulls Rose into the circle. Derrick meets Frenchie's eye and gives him a self-satisfied smirk. Frenchie runs back to camp.
What Derrick is doing is horrible on an interpersonal level, but it's also worth noting that his behavior is also alienating Frenchie from his community and the cultural experience of being part of the drum circle.
Themes
