Ghost of Summer Past: Uncovering Remorse in Louise Erdrich’s ‘The Round House’ Sakshi Kanase College

Louise Erdrich is a prominent and celebrated Native American writer. Her novel ‘The Round House’, covers many themes and issues pertinent to the Native American community. The novel is told in the first-person point of view of the protagonist Joe Coutts, a young Native American boy who narrates the events of the summer of 1988, back when he was 13 years old. Despite the novel essentially being a retelling of the past, Erdrich uses heavily descriptive language, metaphors, and strong imagery to aid her storytelling. The narrative is extremely vivid, and it begs the question, to what extent can one’s past play a prominent role in their lives? What causes Joe to be haunted by his memories of this particular summer to the point where he seems to be still living in it? This paper argues how in her novel, The Round House, Louise Erdrich presents emotions, particularly the protagonist’s remorse, through symbolism and metaphors to emphasize the inescapable, circular, and tragic structure of life on a Native American reservation. This paper will address the relevance of Joe’s remorse in impacting his life as an adult, and further delve into how it particularly highlights the cyclical and tragic nature of Native American life.

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