Essay Questions

Why has the Elk returned to the reservation?

The Elk has returned to the reservation so that she may avenge the slaughter of her unborn calf. Many years previously, she and her calf were killed by a group of young men who are now adults and living on or close by the reservation. The Elk has returned to make sure that they pay for what they have done.

There is also an argument for saying that she has returned because Lewis feels guilty about his part in the slaughter. He has never really got past what he did and so it is possible that he has created her reappearance because he feels that he should be made to pay for his murderous actions years earlier.

Why does Victor want his son to participate in the Sweat Lodge?

Victor is a local cop, and is considered an upstanding member of the community. His son, however, is not similarly viewed. He is a drunk, and lazy to boot, with no real direction in his life. Victor disapproves of the road he has taken and wants him to turn his life around. He feels that he has lost his way, and that the main reason for this is that he has lost touch with tribal tradition and the ways of his ancestors.

The Sweat Lodge is part of that tradition and Victor believes that if his son can re-connect with ancestral teachings he will be able to get back on a more positive path and accept the ways of the Elders as a compass that can guide him to a better lived life.

How does the Elk achieve closure?

Although she has killed almost everyone involved in her slaughter, as well as those close to them, the Elk does not achieve closure until she finds her murdered calf. She is led to the massacre site, where she is able to find the grave that Gabe had dug, and where he had thrown the body of her calf, and she takes the calf's body into the wilderness with her. Once they are reunited, her quest to avenge the death is complete. She feels that she has done the right thing by her child, which brings her closure.