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Part 2
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Green Grass, Running Water, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Indian Culture and White Culture
Storytelling
Oppression and the Justice System
The Power of Nature
Summary
Analysis
The narrator tells Coyote to sit down and listen again. Lone Ranger, Robinson Crusoe, Hawkeye, and Ishmael debate whose turn it is to tell a story, and they decide it’s now Robinson Crusoe’s turn. In the creation story, Thought Woman walks to a River. She greets the River and it greets her back. The River is cold, but it promises Thought Woman that if she goes in the middle it will be warmer. She goes to float in the middle, and it is warmer. She falls asleep, and the River carries her on. Rocks and Trees try to wake her up, but she stays asleep.
The third part of the book once again follows a pattern set forth by the two previous parts, introducing a new creation story that starts with a single woman. Although water is often a positive symbol in the novel and something that makes life possible, this River is a more mysterious character, luring Thought Woman into it and then lulling her to sleep in order to carry her down its current. The River could represent the inevitable flow of destiny, which Thought Woman is powerless to resist.
Themes
Driving in the U.S. near the Canadian border, Dr. Hovaugh is in a white convertible with Babo. They cross the border to go north into Canada in search of the missing Indians. Babo has never been to Canada before. They use binoculars to look around, in search of some omen to show them where the Indians are.
As the novel progresses, the action goes from being spread across multiple locations to slowly all focusing on the town of Blossom. Dr. Hovaugh and Babo’s trip to Canada brings them a step closer to meeting the other characters. The binoculars show how they are observers, providing an outside perspective on the town.
Themes
In his Blossom apartment, Lionel groans as he wakes up on his 40th birthday. He decides he needs to change his life and plans to start flossing tomorrow. He also wants to leave Bursum’s store by the end of the year. When he was six, he wanted to be a hero like John Wayne. He decides to tell Alberta about his plans to leave the store immediately but to wait a week or so before telling Bursum.
This passage humorously shows how bad Lionel is at trying to change his life. Even for something as small as flossing, he vows to do it tomorrow instead of doing it right away. The fact that Lionel idolized John Wayne (a famous white cowboy actor who was often depicted killing Indians) shows how there is some truth to Norma’s accusations that Lionel wishes he could be white.
Themes
At her home in Blossom, Latisha lies in bed and finds that Elizabeth has climbed out of her crib to see her, but Latisha doesn’t want to wake up. During one of the years of her marriage to George, he lost his job and wanted to stay home with the kids, but he ended up buying a lot of new things he didn’t need, like a pasta machine. He used the pasta machine one day, but when Latisha mentioned that not all of the sections of pasta came out right, George got angry.
George’s desire to be a better parent follow a similar pattern to his efforts to take an interest in Indian culture. Although George can seem intelligent at first, attempting to make something fairly complicated like pasta, he doesn’t have to follow through to complete his plan, and he gets angry when Latisha criticizes him.
Themes
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Latisha goes about her morning routine of showering and having breakfast with Christian, Benjamin, and Elizabeth. She gets the children ready for school. Back when George was trying to be more domestic, he made croissants that were burned and ratatouille that made Christian and Benjamin sick. A week later, George left. He sent letters home, and at first, the letters amused Latisha, but eventually, they began to bore her.
George’s experiments with croissants and ratatouille show him continuing to try to make more complicated dishes but not having the diligence to complete them correctly. George’s eventual decision to leave his family is a culmination of his inability to see things through to the end. His struggles with commitment resonate with many of the other characters in the story, like Lionel who struggles to commit to changing himself and Alberta who struggles to commit to a relationship.
Themes
Charlie sits in the coffee shop of the Blossom Lodge. He sees four other Indians at a table who look old, and one of them is wearing a mask. Charlie wonders if the one wearing a mask is from Hollywood, but when he looks again, the Indians are gone. He looks out the window and sees that his rental car is also gone.
The four Indians that Charlie sees at the table seem to be the Lone Ranger (the one wearing a mask), Hawkeye, Ishmael, and Robinson Crusoe, who have made it to Blossom after leaving the psychiatric hospital. Their disappearance with the rental car suggests that they stole it.
Themes
In her room at the lodge, Alberta takes a hot shower and dreams of having a baby. She also can’t stop thinking about Charlie, and Lionel. Her father, Amos, used to believe dreams had a lot of power to them. In the shower, she considers going to see Lionel right away but decides instead that there’s time to go back to bed.
Amos’s beliefs about dreams having power relate back to the prologue of the book, where a Dream of Coyote turns into GOD. In many ways, the way the novel blends realism and fantasy is inspired by dreams, with dreams playing an important spiritual role in some Indian cultures.
Themes
When Alberta was 13, she went with her parents, Amos and Ada, on a trip into the United States, just beyond the border. A rude border guard confiscated their outfits because they contain eagle feathers. Now, Alberta wakes up and feels sick as she tries to imagine what she’ll say to Lionel and Charlie.
The border guard is yet another example of how white-dominated governments have tried to restrict the free movement of Indians. The dancing outfits that Alberta’s family has with them represent a part of Blackfoot culture, and the border guard’s careless treatment of the outfits shows how little he cares about their culture.
Themes
Back when the dam was under construction, Eli got annoyed that Sifton installed a massive floodlight over it. He eventually got an injunction that stopped use of the floodlight after 10 PM. He tried to take pleasure in small ways of resisting Sifton.
After leaving behind his Indian identity for a while, resisting the dam seems to help Eli reconnect with his roots. The floodlight is yet another example of a manmade thing trying to go against nature, as the light makes it bright when it should naturally be dark out.
Themes
After Karen and Eli’s trip to the Sun Dance, they went back to Toronto. Karen started making plans to attend the next year’s Sun Dance, but Eli protested that it was a long trip and he might be teaching then. Karen started bragging to her friends about having seen the Sun Dance.
Karen’s extreme interest in the Sun Dance may be out of care for Eli, but for her, it also seems to be something exotic that she can brag about to her friends. Eli doesn’t know how to explain his complicated feelings to her, so he just tries to avoid the Sun Dance. Eli often tries to avoid problems in his life, and this is why he stayed away from Blossom for so many years.
Themes
In the present, Eli makes coffee and sees a note he stuck to the door to remind him of Lionel’s birthday. Norma has been telling Eli that he has a responsibility to talk to Lionel (who is his nephew) to try to get him to turn his life around. Eli decides he can at least take Lionel out for lunch.
Both Eli and Lionel have tried, and for a time succeed, in gaining the acceptance of white culture, but circumstances have brought each of them back to Blossom. Eli’s decision to speak with Lionel shows how wisdom can be passed between generations.
Themes
Bursum gets to his store early in the morning and hears a mysterious scratching sound that he can’t find the source of. The narrator scolds Coyote for interfering in the story like this. Bursum isn’t Indian but has lived with them for a while, and he was one of the first ones to buy property on Parliament Lake, near the reserve. He thinks it’s a place with potential but hasn’t built a cabin yet and worries he might never. Lionel is late to work. Bursum looks up from his desk and sees four Indians by the door to his store.
The line between story and storyteller has already been blurred with the four elder Indians, and in this passage, Coyote further breaks down those boundaries, showing how, as a supernatural figure, he can appear in the “real world” of people like Bursum. Bursum’s unfulfilled dreams about a lakeside cabin show how despite the success of his store, in many ways he struggles to carry out his goals, similar to Lionel.
Themes
In a creation story, Thought Woman floats from the river to the ocean and wakes up confused about where she is. She meets a man named A. A. Gabriel who has a briefcase and a business card. A. A. Gabriel starts to interrogate Thought Woman, similar to a border guard. He tells her she needs to have a photo taken of her, so she should go wait over by the snake.
The “A.A.” in A. A. Gabriel could stand for Archangel (referencing the Biblical angel of Gabriel), or it could also stand for Alcoholics Anonymous (since alcoholism is a theme that runs through the novel). Like many characters in the creation story, this Gabriel is less benevolent than his Bible equivalent, and his desire to take a photo of Thought Woman is similar to how many white characters in the novel want to photograph the Sun Dance.
Themes
Outside Bursum’s store, Lone Ranger, Hawkeye, Robinson Crusoe, and Ishmael happen to see Coyote, who dances and changes the weather. Robinson Crusoe tells Coyote they’re headed to a birthday party for their grandson.
The fact that Coyote’s dance is powerful enough to change the weather reflects the central importance of dancing in Blackfoot culture (particularly the annual Sun Dance).
Themes
Dr. Hovaugh and Babo park in front of the Blossom Lodge. Dr. Hovaugh surveys the place and supposes the four Indians could have stayed there. They book a room at the place.
The Blossom Lodge becomes a unifying place for several of the characters in the story. A lodge is a place to stay temporarily, perhaps reflecting how so many of the characters are at transition points in their lives.
Themes
Leaving his Blossom apartment, Lionel walks down the street, making goals to plan out the rest of his life. He fantasizes about telling Bursum he’s leaving his job and going back to school. A storm breaks out, and he gets wet. Alberta sits waiting in a coffee shop. A Black woman and a white man are eating together in the diner—there aren’t many Black people in this area.
The storm in this passage is yet another example of water in the novel. The white man and Black woman in the coffee shop are in fact probably Dr. Hovaugh and Babo, showing again how the different plot threads of the novel are beginning to converge around Blossom.
Themes
Back in the past, when Alberta was young and her family encountered the border patrol guards, they got back their feathered costumes, but they were in poor condition. Now, in the present, she pays her bill at the coffee shop and decides the white man and Black woman must be tourists.
The tattered state of the dancing clothes reflect the guards’ lack of respect for Indian culture and perhaps also toward nature (because the clothes are made of eagle feathers).
Themes
During her marriage with Eli, Karen stopped talking about the Sun Dance after a few years. Eventually, Karen started to get very sick and needed medication. She said she’d like to see the Sun Dance again before she died, but Eli tried to reassure her she wouldn’t die. In the present, Eli drives in the rain with Norma and tries to defend Lionel’s job, pointing out how many men in the reserve are unemployed.
Karen’s absence in the present timeline still has not been explained, and so her illness is an ominous sign. Karen’s decision to drop the subject of the Sun Dance seems to be her sad acceptance of the idea that there are some aspects of Eli’s life she’ll never understand.
Themes
Charlie goes to the car rental to report the stolen car, but they tell him that whatever car got stolen wasn’t one of theirs—the car he was supposed to rent is still on the lot. Charlie gives up at the rental place and takes a taxi to Bursum’s to see Lionel. Meanwhile, the narrator asks Coyote to stop dancing and making rain.
The mysterious situation with the car shows how the supernatural is increasingly becoming a part of even the “real world” plots of the novel. The narrator’s comment to Coyote suggests that Coyote’s dancing may be causing not only the rain in Blossom but also all the other chaos, like the mystery of the car.
Themes
Continuing the creation story, Thought Woman floats until she hits an island. The Island tells her to watch where she’s going. On the island is Robinson Crusoe, who spends his time writing lists. Coyote interrupts to say he’s heard of this character before, but the narrator insists that while many people in the story look the same, this is a different person. Robinson Crusoe tells Thought Woman that she can be his Friday.
Robinson Crusoe is a literary character who is famously stranded on an island. He has a companion named Friday who is a native Caribbean. In the novel, Friday is a loyal companion who converts to Christianity, but in this story, Thought Woman resists becoming a passive servant to a white master.
Themes
Lionel comes to Bursum’s store and finds the four Indians there waiting: Lone Ranger, Robinson Crusoe, Hawkeye, and Ishmael. Lionel is soaked from walking in the rain. Soon Eli comes in and everyone greets him. Eli brings up that he hears Lionel is planning to go back to school. Rather than encouraging Lionel, however, Eli just says some people stay and some people go.
Eli’s ambivalence toward Lionel going back to school perhaps reflects how Eli himself left behind an academic life to return to Blossom. Eli’s age has given him the wisdom to appreciate some of the things about Blossom that he didn’t before, even though Lionel’s opportunities in the small town might be more limited.
Themes
Charlie arrives at Bursum’s, and everyone greets him too. Bursum takes the opportunity with everyone in his store to show off some of his VCRs. Meanwhile, Alberta is still at the police station, answering questions about her car that was stolen from the Blossom Lodge parking lot. She thinks that if she hadn’t come to town for Lionel’s birthday, she never would’ve had the car stolen.
Even Lionel’s birthday becomes an excuse for Bursum to try to earn more money, showing how greedy Bursum is and how little he values Lionel as anything other than a way to make money.
Themes
Dr. Hovaugh finishes eating breakfast with Babo at the Blossom Lodge. Babo is Black, and Dr. Hovaugh mentions that her ancestors were enslaved, but Babo replies that it wasn’t her ancestors but her folks. They make a plan to go out searching for the four Indians, but when they reach the parking lot, they discover their car is gone.
Babo’s comment is about how her ancestors in Africa weren’t enslaved, just her “folks” (her more recent family members who lived in the United States). Like many of the Indian characters, Babo references a history that came before white colonists settled in the Americas.
Themes
At Bursum’s store, Charlie thinks to himself that Lionel is looking old. Bursum plays a John Wayne Western to try to draw attention to his VCRs. In the video, John Wayne keeps shooting Indians. All of a sudden, Portland rides onto the screen. The screen is full of color, and Portland and the other Indians shoot down the white soldiers, killing John Wayne. Bursum complains that his tape must’ve gotten messed up, but Eli enjoys the film. Coyote also comments on how much he liked the movie to the narrator.
This Western that all the characters watch is the opposite of most Westerns, showing a violent Indian victory. In some ways, this Western is a kind of wish fulfillment, allowing Portland to finally be the hero. But there’s also a dark side to its violent imagery, and it shows how this violence is at the heart of the Western genre—and how it only disturbs people like Bursum when they see this violence flipped in the other direction.
Themes
Continuing the creation story, Thought Woman floats down to Florida, where she gets arrested. Coyote apologizes to the narrator for his dancing and for getting too involved in the story.
Thought Woman’s floating takes her to Florida, where the two women of the previous creation stories also ended up. Coyote’s apology about dancing seems to suggest that the unusual Western everyone watched in the previous passage was partly the result of Coyote’s interference.
Themes
