The Trickster
The Trickster is an archetype in many religions and myths around the world. The Trickster is, as his name suggests, playful and mischievous, sometimes helpful and sometimes harmful. He has intense appetites and an even more intense narcissism, but he often means well. His presence usually brings chaos, but sometimes that chaos can prompt those in his orbit to question themselves and their situations in a way that turns that chaos into positive effects.
John vs. Wayne
There is a character named John. There is also a character named Uncle Wayne. For those who don’t watch movies made during the 20th century, an actor named John Wayne made a bunch of Westerns—movies set during the 19th century in the American frontier west of the Mississippi River—in which no matter what else was going down between characters, the real bad guys were always Native Americans, who in those days were always called Indians. The very concept of pitting two characters who together form the name of the pop culture figure most strongly associated with anti-Native American prejudice cannot be mere coincidence. The author quite clearly made that decision for a purpose. A story that pits John versus Wayne is a very subtle way of exploring within the novel the reality that there is not and never has been a singular collective “Indian” culture as has been consistently portrayed within mainstream white American culture, but is rather every bit as diverse as the cultures occupying any other continent.
Religious Conflict
The novel gives a nuanced view of Indigenous religion and Christian traditions, and through the character of Lillian - an Indigenous woman who is proud of her religion, culture, and history but also intrigued by Jesus - a way in which these two faiths can operate together without diminishing either one. Of course, Taylor explicitly accounts for the way Catholics at the residential schools destroyed countless lives and Indigenous culture, but his goal is to show that it's Christianity as practiced by people that is the problem, not the teachings of Jesus himself.
Family
Family is extremely important in the novel. Taylor shows us a large Indigenous family coming to terms with losing their matriarch, as well as navigating the vicissitudes of being Native in a post-colonial world. The family, which consists of siblings, cousins, aunts, and uncles, fight and cry together, share stories, and offer advice and help. Some are more introverted than others (Wayne), some have very important jobs and aren't around much (Maggie), some are well-versed in Anishnawbe traditions (Wayne), and some are more Westernized (Dakota's parents). The closeness of this family is a powerful refutation of the claim made by the Canadian government that Native children needed to be taken from their homes and put in residential schools.
Growing Up
Virgil is a 13-year-old kid and things aren't exactly easy for him. His father died, his mother barely has time for him, he's not going to pass grade 7, and he wishes he could leave the reservation and see the world. He doesn't seem to really know himself—that is, until Nanabush/John shows up. He taps into unknown powers of observation, resourcefulness, and cleverness, standing up against basically one of the most powerful creatures in the world. He learns more about his culture as well as what really matters in his life—family. By the end of the story he doesn't have everything figured out, but he's certainly a little closer.
Survival
Sammy is the most tragic character in the novel. As a young boy he was taken from Otter Lake and placed in one of the residential schools, where he was subsequently beaten, abused, and culturally oppressed. He doesn't get a happy ending; he comes out of the school forever altered, and becomes a drunk and, to all appearances, a crazy person. John identifies that he has found a way to cope (sort of) by speaking only Anishnawbe and weaving in Shakespeare in order to push back at the cruel Father who was obsessed with the Bard and refused to let Sammy speak anything but English. Nevertheless, things don't improve for Sammy; he only survives to become Sam, the local drunk, someone whom most people go out of their way to avoid. His story reminds us of the tragedies inflicted on Indigenous people by settler colonialists and their government.
Magic
Lillian makes a case for magic as a crucial component in making life worth living. She manages to hold on to magic in her life until her dying breath, at which point she summons Nanabush to bring magic to Maggie and Virgil. Maggie is burdened by her job and Virgil is an unmotivated teen, so who better to experience the chaos, charm, and provocations of the Trickster? Even though some of the things Nanabush brings into their lives aren't exactly positive, he does shake things up, makes mother and son think about things in a new way, and, for Virgil at least, activates the divine and animal worlds in a way he'd never seen before.
