Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Three Day Road, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Isolation vs. Community
Racism and Assimilation
Language and Storytelling
Nature, War, and Survival
Summary
Analysis
Xavier and Elijah are given orders to advance across the field again, but there is a machine gun and “plenty of whiz bangs” firing across “no man’s land.” Xavier wants to “force” the C.O “at gunpoint to go across first.” He angrily rips the military identification tags from his neck, leaving only the medicine bundle. “That alone is who I am,” Xavier says.
Here, Xavier finally rejects wemistikoshiw culture once and for all. He is not willing to die for people who don’t care about him. Xavier’s medicine bundle is symbolic of his Native identity, so he keeps it and rips off his military ID.
Themes
“Let’s go, gentlemen, shall we?” the lieutenant says coming up behind Xavier. As he walks ahead, there is a loud “thunk,” and the lieutenant’s body flies across the field. Xavier trips over his legs and falls to the ground, narrowly missing gunfire to his head. Elijah appears, firing his revolver. He is “in command now.”
The sudden death of the lieutenant saves Xavier’s life. Had Xavier not tripped he would have been killed by the machine-gun fire. Xavier can’t leave, since now Elijah can inflict far too much damage unchecked by the chain of command.
Themes
“We can’t stay here forever, boys,” Elijah yells to the men. “[Xavier], you come with me.” He tells the men to start firing. “Ashtum,” he says to Xavier. “Come.” They break out and run down the line, and Xavier’s arms begins to burn. He has taken a bullet at some point. “Is this not beautiful?” Elijah yells over the shellfire.
Elijah has truly gone mad. He believes that the carnage and death is “beautiful,” and he is clearly separating Xavier from the unit so that he can kill him. Elijah senses that Xavier is dangerous—Elijah knows that he has gone windigo and that Xavier will have to kill him.
Themes
Xavier finds cover and sits down, and Elijah hands him a cigarette. “You always were the better shot,” Elijah says to Xavier. Xavier can see Elijah’s lips moving, but he can’t hear him. “We have to get out of here,” Xavier shouts. “This bombardment’s too heavy.” Elijah says something but Xavier can’t make it out “We both can’t…” Elijah’s voice trails off. “Are we not best friends, Xavier?” Elijah asks. “Are we not best friends and great hunters?” He looks at Xavier. “It has gone too far,” Elijah says as he puts his hands around Xavier’s throat. “I have gone too far, haven’t I?”
Elijah is trying to tell Xavier that they both can’t live. Elijah is a windigo and Xavier is a windigo killer; they can’t both survive. Elijah isn’t insane enough to forget who Xavier is, but though he still loves him, it simply isn’t enough to stop the windigo in him from killing Xavier. There is some remorse here as well, Elijah isn’t completely lost, he has simply “gone too far” to come back.
Themes
Get the entire Three Day Road LitChart as a printable PDF.
“He is killing me,” Xavier thinks to himself as Elijah strangles him. He hears Niska’s voice: “Do what you have to do.” Xavier picks up his Mauser and places it at Elijah’s throat. He pushes Elijah over until he is sitting on his chest. “Elijah,” he whispers through tears and pushes down on the Mauser. Tears spring to Elijah’s eyes and he tries to speak. “I must finish this,” Xavier thinks. “I have become what you are, Niska.” Xavier grabs the identification tags from Elijah’s neck and leaves his body behind.
Ironically, Xavier strangles Elijah with the very gun he tries so hard to get from Xavier for most of the war. In this moment, Xavier knows that he, too, is a windigo killer. Xavier kills Elijah because he has to in order to survive. Not only will Elijah try to kill Xavier, but Xavier will risk going windigo himself if he doesn’t kill Elijah.
Themes
Xavier wakes in a hospital bed with only a stump for a leg. He had taken fire after grabbing Elijah’s tags, and now they think he is Elijah. Xavier doesn’t know how to tell them he isn’t, so he says nothing. To the nurses, he is Elijah Whiskeyjack, and they bring him all the morphine he wants. Two officers come and “salute” Xavier. They say he is “decorated soldier” and will be given “comfortable passage” home. The nurse gives him some morphine vials. “Use these carefully,” she says. “Only take a little when you need it, when the pain is too much.”
When Xavier assumes Elijah’s identity, he has officially lost his own. The trauma of the war and Elijah’s death have left him unsure of who he is. He has slowly been assimilated during the war—he speaks English now and dresses like a wemistikoshiw. Despite realizing that he is a windigo killer, Xavier is moving further and further away from his Native identity and culture.
Themes
