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Chapter 21
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Elatsoe, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Family and Friendship
Justice
Cultural Identity and Coming of Age
Colonialism and Monsters
Death, Grief, and Healing
Storytelling
Summary
Analysis
Ellie hasn’t seen Dan since she (or, more accurately, Kirby) gave her classmates nosebleeds. Ellie was giving a speech on Six-Great developing a method for raising the dead and had described bringing Kirby back when a boy raised his hand and argued that all ghosts are bad, and that animals can’t be ghosts anyway. To prove him wrong, Ellie told Kirby to howl—and Kirby’s howl was so loud that the windows exploded, everyone’s nose bled, and all kids except for Ellie took cover in the hallway. Afraid of the consequences, Ellie and Kirby ran home. Dan had told her that evening that Kirby isn’t a toy or a pet anymore—he is a “conscious grenade,” and she shouldn’t pull the pin without a reason.
Ellie’s classmate is arguably antagonistic and dismissive of Native traditions, highlighting again the kind of prejudice that Ellie has to deal with regularly. But Ellie’s response highlights her immaturity: she doesn’t know what’s going to happen when she asks Kirby to howl, she just figures it’ll be impressive. And it is, but not in the way she wanted it to be. This episode (and Dan’s talk later) teaches her that she must approach her tribe’s traditions with respect and caution, in a more measured and mature manner.
Themes
Now, Ellie nervously tells Dan about her journey to the prehistoric ocean. He confirms that she visited the land of the dead and asks her to describe her thoughts in the moment about feeling like she and prehistoric animals are part of one family. Then, Dan asks Ellie if she’s been dwelling on Trevor’s death, and Ellie confirms that she is. Dan explains that spending time with ghosts and dwelling on a “premature and violent” death like Trevor’s can weigh a person down and enable them to enter the land of the dead. What she must do, he suggests, is to always remember that there’s a difference between the living and the dead. Ellie promises Vivian to be careful and reassures her mom that she’ll be able to get home again, just in case.
Notably, Ellie isn’t in trouble here: she’s just searching for guidance from people who are wiser and more knowledgeable than she is. This gives her the confidence to speak up and actually get help. Dan’s assessment of what’s happening helps explain why Lipan grieving rituals exist the way they do: they’re designed to keep people tethered to the living world. Ellie might be doing a noble thing by trying to solve the mystery of Trevor’s death, but it also means she’s spending too much time (by Lipan standards) dwelling on Trevor, and this puts her at risk.
Themes
Ellie calls Kirby, and when Dan expresses interest (or perhaps concern), Ellie tells Kirby to become visible. Upon seeing the dog, Dan says it’s time for him to go—and then, Vivian must tell Ellie Six-Great’s final story. As Vivian walks Dan out, Lenore seems to want to get Ellie to tell her how to raise the dead. Ellie can tell she isn’t okay, and she’s worried about Lenore. Just as Ellie begins to explain her and Jay’s sleuthing into Willowbee and Dr. Allerton’s “freaky magic,” she receives a text from Jay telling her that he found an article about a farmer who died after a bear attack, and he forwards it to Ellie. Ellie shares with Lenore that Dr. Allerton’s magic allows him to move injuries from one person to another.
What Six-Great’s final story consists of is a mystery for now, but Dan’s tone suggests it’s extremely important—and that it will provide guidance as to how Ellie should move forward. Jay’s text confirms how Dr. Allerton is miraculously “healing” people: by simply transferring their injuries to other people. It's implied that this is why Ellie and Jay saw the woman with the same injuries as the little girl Aunt Bell saw: the woman seems to have taken on the girl’s injuries.
Themes
