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Chapter 47
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Indian Horse, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Family and Tradition
Cultural Genocide
Abuse and Trauma
Racism and Prejudice
Transcendence
Summary
Analysis
Saul writes that he finds it difficult to write anything about his time in the New Dawn Center. His personal counselor, Moses, claims that writing down his thoughts will lead him to discover something important about himself—but Saul can’t imagine what this could be.
Even though the book has come full-circle, Saul still hasn’t had any epiphanies about himself. Rather, he seems just as angry and bitter as he ever was.
Themes
Saul spends much of his time at the New Dawn Center exploring the facility’s grounds. One night, very late, he stares up at the stars. Suddenly, he sees a man—his own great-grandfather, Slanting Sky. The figure he sees is old and extremely thin. Then, Saul sees his other family members—his parents, grandparents, and siblings. Saul watches as his family walks away into the fog, and he begins to weep. Saul decides that he needs to leave—“only this time I knew exactly where I was going.”
For the first time in many years, Saul experiences a vision like the one he had as a child. Whereas Saul’s first vision (at least according to Naomi) served as an introduction to his family and tradition, this vision serves as a sobering reminder of how cut-off Saul is from his past. And yet the vision serves a positive purpose: it seems to give Saul an idea of how to address his problems.
Themes
