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Charlie Looking Bear
Alberta, a Blackfoot Indian, is a professor at a university in Calgary and the daughter of Amos and Ada. She quickly married and divorced a man named Bob and is now currently torn between a potential relationship with both Lionel and Charlie. Alberta wants a child, but she struggles with committing to another person, and that is why she puts off making a decision about whether she prefers Lionel or Charlie. In spite of going to great lengths to get pregnant, including looking into artificial insemination, Alberta ultimately gets pregnant by accident, illustrating how fate works in mysterious ways—just like the trickster god Coyote.
Alberta Quotes in Green Grass, Running Water
The Green Grass, Running Water quotes below are all either spoken by Alberta or refer to Alberta. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Part 1
Quotes
“You used to sell televisions and stereos at Bursum’s, too.”
“Yeah, and there’s the difference. I used to sell that crap. But I don’t anymore. I got out and made something of myself. Lionel’s never going to get out. Hell, another couple of years and he’ll be back on the reserve running for council. Besides, you know how I feel about you.”
“It’s one of the reasons I’m going to Blossom.”
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
In the morning, before the sun was up, Alberta went outside. The blanket was folded and waiting on the wood table. The pickup was sitting in a small lake where the outhouse used to be, the water above the wheels and the doors. The air was clear, and Alberta could see all the way to the mountains and across the prairies until the land outran itself.
Part 3
Quotes
The older guy and the skinny kid made Amos take everything out of the truck. They unwrapped the dance outfits and laid them on the asphalt.
“Shouldn’t put the outfits down like that,” said Amos. “It isn’t right.”
“Guess we’re the ones to say what’s right and what’s not right,” said the guard. “Isn’t that right?”
“That’s sacred stuff,” said Amos.
“No,” said the guard. “What we have here are eagle feathers.”
Part 4
Quotes
Lionel waited until Charlie’s car disappeared down the road. “So,” he said to Alberta, “you in town for the weekend?”
“That’s right,” said Alberta. “Figured I’d give Norma a hand.”
“With what?”
“With the cabin,” said Norma. “You can help, too.”
Lionel stopped what he was doing and looked at Norma and then he looked at the dam. “You’re not serious?”
“Sure she is, brother,” said Latisha.
“Won’t take much,” said Norma. “We’ll get Harley’s truck and drag as many logs as we can back up here, and what we’re short, we can cut and bring in.”
“That’s a lot of work,” said Lionel.
“My mother did it,” said Norma. “Did it all by herself.”
Alberta set her feet in the mud and put her hands on her hips. “You can help or you can sell televisions.”
Get the entire Green Grass, Running Water LitChart as a printable PDF.
Alberta Quotes in Green Grass, Running Water
The Green Grass, Running Water quotes below are all either spoken by Alberta or refer to Alberta. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Part 1
Quotes
“You used to sell televisions and stereos at Bursum’s, too.”
“Yeah, and there’s the difference. I used to sell that crap. But I don’t anymore. I got out and made something of myself. Lionel’s never going to get out. Hell, another couple of years and he’ll be back on the reserve running for council. Besides, you know how I feel about you.”
“It’s one of the reasons I’m going to Blossom.”
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
In the morning, before the sun was up, Alberta went outside. The blanket was folded and waiting on the wood table. The pickup was sitting in a small lake where the outhouse used to be, the water above the wheels and the doors. The air was clear, and Alberta could see all the way to the mountains and across the prairies until the land outran itself.
Part 3
Quotes
The older guy and the skinny kid made Amos take everything out of the truck. They unwrapped the dance outfits and laid them on the asphalt.
“Shouldn’t put the outfits down like that,” said Amos. “It isn’t right.”
“Guess we’re the ones to say what’s right and what’s not right,” said the guard. “Isn’t that right?”
“That’s sacred stuff,” said Amos.
“No,” said the guard. “What we have here are eagle feathers.”
Part 4
Quotes
Lionel waited until Charlie’s car disappeared down the road. “So,” he said to Alberta, “you in town for the weekend?”
“That’s right,” said Alberta. “Figured I’d give Norma a hand.”
“With what?”
“With the cabin,” said Norma. “You can help, too.”
Lionel stopped what he was doing and looked at Norma and then he looked at the dam. “You’re not serious?”
“Sure she is, brother,” said Latisha.
“Won’t take much,” said Norma. “We’ll get Harley’s truck and drag as many logs as we can back up here, and what we’re short, we can cut and bring in.”
“That’s a lot of work,” said Lionel.
“My mother did it,” said Norma. “Did it all by herself.”
Alberta set her feet in the mud and put her hands on her hips. “You can help or you can sell televisions.”
