Past and Present; Man and Animal
The novel is concerned with Native American history, traditions and culture as well as a link between past and present and man and animal. The figure referred to here, for instance, is a character long dead before the events of the narrative proper. The imagery is richly metaphorical throughout.
“At the crest of the ridge, he feels himself rising to full height, the bear in him reaching to embrace this new life and shatter its bones.”
The Bending Girl
On two occasions, the author uses a metaphor that repeats itself. In neither case is it immediately apparent—at least, not out of context—what the image is intended to mean. Such ambiguous use of language is another common element in the text.
“The girl bends beneath him like a willow branch, supple with terror.”
Allusive Metaphor
At a crucial juncture, a character makes an allusion to the Biblical story of Jonah, asserting that when God is looking for you, the only hiding place lies beneath the surface. Noting that no whale appears in sight, the allusion draw near:
“…we have the forest. It’s dark, like the belly of the whale, and I know places.”
“Alex was a puzzle.”
The novel’s biggest understatement, perhaps. Alex Yazzie is the University of California’s only cross-dressing Navajo anthropologist. As if that didn’t make puzzling enough, he has another unique quirk: rejecting the notion of definitions, he has replaced the concept with his own called “infinitions.”
Simple Simile
Not everything is complex metaphor and ambiguous imagery. The author rarely showcases such language for mundane descriptive purposes, but it does happen:
“You appeared to be sauntering along like the absentminded professor.”
