A red convertible is stigmatized as an object of desire. It enhances the image of its owner and the “red car” conveys similar meanings linked to youth, carefreeness, passion, luxury and speed. However, the red convertible described in the story "The Red Convertible" is more family oriented and the real goal is to strengthen the brotherly bond. Louise Erdrich comes from a large family with many brothers and sisters. She chooses to delve into the history of the Vietnam War and its toll on the mind and spirit of a young Native American who entered the war and its negative impact on his brother and their car. The story traces the decline and separation of two heroes, Henry and Leyman, who celebrated love and life at the same time. The story brings to the surface Native American oral tradition seen through the author's eyes, brotherhood, the characterization of Leyman and Henry, the irony of the narrative, and self-identity. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay In her novel, Louise Erdrich infuses parts of her own biography as someone sharing Native American roots and living near reservations Native Americans of Minnesota. . Erdrich was related to the Chippewa Indians, the same tribe to which her characters belong. His parents were also instructors to Native American children. The structure of The Red Convertible is a story within a story. Telling stories is a very important tradition for Native Americans who have passed down tradition and history on these occasions. “Erdrich grew up in a family of storytellers and learned early to thus appreciate the world of possibilities evoked by the voice of the storyteller” (Stookey 1). In this short story, Lyman Lamartine tells the biography of the life and love of his brother Henry. The Chippewa also have ties to the Anishinaabe Indian peoples. The autobiographical narrative style of the story is essential. The story is told in the first person, so the speaker is already familiar with the details and has had direct experience with the subject. Leyman injects the story with direct quotes and speeches he remembers, at the same time he uses prose, using his own words to construct the story. The informal speech and easy language also conveys the simplicity of the speaker and the conversational tone he adopts to connect with his target audience. However, the simple, direct language is also deep and subtle as Leyman speaks of a dearly departed brother and a happier past period in history. The story of “The Red Convertible” is rooted in reality, because the events that occur are credible and do not contain any element that obscures, embellishes and decorates the truth. Instead, the ugly face of reality is seen as the story unfolds from a hasty decision to buy a car, to a pleasant summer (told at the height of nostalgia), to impact of the Vietnam War, the draft and the post-war period. -traumatic stress, family alienation, change, a tragic accident (or apparent suicide) and deep grief. The truth of the story rests on word of mouth; however, one can see that this is not some idle story meant to entertain the masses. Harsh political criticism shines through the story in which Lyman blames the government for letting his brother Henry go to war and being so terribly psychologically and emotionally damaged that he is incompetent to deal with his family and the world . Lyman accuses that "allwar has been resolved in the spirit of the government” (Erdrich). Suspicions about the futility of the war and the government's underhanded support for the war were not a secret that the American public attacked. Lyman expresses “life on the reservation roads, which they say is like government promises – full of holes. It almost hurt me, I'll tell you! (Erdrich). This frank comment shows Lyman's disillusionment with the U.S. government, the injustice and neglect of the Native American population, and abandonment on the reservations. The theme of identity is at the heart of Native American stories. “The mythic American success story continues to primarily examine our deepest identity as individuals using the narrative paradigm” (Reid 65). Lyman mourns the loss of a brother and the loss of the convertible - the two entities become one. The narrator rejoices in the person his brother was during the glorious days of his youth. The story is told in memory of his brother Henry, who goes from being a fun-loving, even-tempered young man to a nervous, unstable, and melancholy veteran. “Henry returns home in The Red Cabriolet transformed from a relaxed young man into a withdrawn, tense shell of a man” (Beidler 178). The title of the story, The Red Convertible, is actually "Henry" since the car becomes almost human and is destroyed upon Henry's death. To solidify this point, just look at the connections between Henry and the red convertible. Henry's post-war photo shows "shadows on his face (as) deep as holes (Erdrich) and when Lyman vandalizes the car for Henry to repair, Lyman describes that "it looked worse than any typical Indian car... full of holes” (Erdrich). Thus, the brotherly bond between Lyman and Henry transfers to the car. As a veteran, Henry was transformed into an object riddled with holes, symbolic of the holes a body would suffer from bullets. In this case, the holes are emotional and reveal a broken human spirit. On the other hand, at the beginning of the story, Lyman's encounter with the red car was like love at first sight, "as big as life." Really like he was alive. This car (was) rested, calm and shiny” (Erdrich). This red car was in perfect condition, just like Henry was before he entered the war - in perfect condition. The story presents Henry as the victim who suffers and sinks due to intense internal trauma. The narrative reveals "a legacy of devastation (that) threatens the characters of Love Medicine, and some succumb." Henry Junior, for example, embodies these Indians...as suicidal, inarticulate, almost paralyzed in their inability to direct their energies toward the resolution of what seems to them an insoluble conflict” (Gleason). Henry gives up the fight by diving into the Red River which reminds the reader of the flow of blood and the color of the car. Not only is Henry a victim, but so is his brother, because even though he survived his brother's suicide, he still suffers: "Lyman does not emerge from poverty but from despondency" (Nagel 41). The only difference between Henry and Leyman is that Leyman is able to express what he feels and achieve literary catharsis. Henry is a victim of war and its scenes of horror etched forever in his memory. He becomes an invalid to society and his family, serving as the “prototype of the displaced soldier returning home…the experience of combat destroys the sense of reality, making it difficult, if not impossible, for his reintegration into society” (Wong 72). The bonds of brotherhood are so affected that all the relationships that develop through the automobile are broken. Despite Lyman's urgings, Henry was never able to socialize or hang out with thefamily as before. Erdrich portrays the character of Lyman as an ambitious, lucky, spontaneous, easy-going, selfless Native American who loves his brother very much. The central point of Lyman's character is his transfer of the car to Henry, whom he considers the sole owner since his death: "We owned it together until his boots filled with water one night windy and that he buys back my share. Now Henry owns the whole car” (Erdrich). The transition from co-ownership to non-ownership is represented by the passage in the book. Lyman's generosity depreciates the value of material possession while holding in high esteem the value of his brother Henry and their relationship. What he does when the truth comes out about his brother's death is vital in Native American tradition where "Lyman's driving the car into the river represents the custom of burying a deceased person's private property with him." (Wong 74). Ultimately, this act is a rebuttal as the siblings argued over who should own the car. Lyman refuses the car because the first source of his happiness came from seeing his brother happy, and since his brother perished, the meaning of the car has descended into absurdity. The next important feature is that Lyman places his brother Henry as the older of the two at the beginning of the story, although in reality Lyman is the older. This reversal of ages only shows the deference and respect for his brother that Lyman feels he deserves. Lyman terribly abuses the car in a desperate attempt to get back his brother whom he had lost in the war. As if he knew death was near, Lyman shook his brother, shouting, "Wake up, wake up, wake up... (Henry's) face was totally white and hard (Erdrich). Lyman's main role in the post-war story is to initiate the process of resuscitation and recovery since his brother lost his true identity due to the Vietnam War. It can be argued that Henry was already dead since what returned after the war was only a shell of the once energetic and lighthearted young man. Lyman tries to salvage what's left of their relationship by going on a trip with Henry and giving him the car, in the hopes that it would contribute to a meaningful purpose in life. Lyman's ambition is also a quality he speaks about with pride. He begins the story by saying that he was the first to own a convertible on the Native American reservation. Native Americans were generally poor and insolvent. Lyman reveals this fact because when he was young, he knew how to make money well. The car is a memorial to his restaurant success which unfortunately ended in a natural disaster as he spends most of his money buying the car. He boasts that “I was the first to drive a convertible on my reservation” (Erdrich). His business acumen was noticed by those around him. He gives the reader a list of his former jobs as shoeshine boy, flower seller, dishwasher, busboy, cook, assistant manager, manager, co-owner and proprietor, a self-made success. Ascending social movement and success set Lyman apart from his brother and his native society. The car is identified with its success in American society since “the car is very clearly an artifact of the industrial world,…and this means that Lulu's children are moving quickly in the international world….the car is an expression of modernity in the white world and an emblem of pride for boys” (Nagel 42). The poverty of the Native Americans is clearly visible in their early years. Odd jobs are used to earn income to support the family's needs. Irony of history, the convertible thanks to.