A red convertible has a stigma attached as an object of desire. It enhances the image of its owner and the "red car" carries with it similar meanings linked to youth, recklessness, 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 bond between siblings. Louise Erdrich came from a large family with many brothers and sisters. He chooses to delve into the history of the Vietnam War and its ravages on the mind and spirit of a young Native American who entered the war and its negative impact on his brother and their machine. The story traces the decline and separation of two heroes, Henry and Leyman, who celebrated love and life in a single period of time. The story brings to the surface Native American oral tradition as seen through the eyes of the author, brotherhood, the characterization of Leyman and Henry, the irony of storytelling, and personal identity. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In her novel, Louise Erdrich infuses parts of her biography as a person who shared Native American roots and lived near Native American reservations in Minnesota. Erdrich was related to the Chippewa Indians, the same tribe to which her characters belong. His parents were also instructors of Native American children. The structure of The Red Convertible is a story within a story. Storytelling is a very important tradition for Native Americans who on these occasions pass down tradition and history. “Erdrich grew up in a family of storytellers and learned early on to appreciate the world of possibilities evoked by the storyteller's voice” (Stookey 1). In this short story, Lyman Lamartine tells the biography of the life and love of his brother Henry. The Chippewa also have connections to the Anishinaabe Indian peoples. The autobiographical narrative style of the story is essential. The story is told in first person so the speaker already knows the details well and has had first-hand experience with the topic. Leyman infuses the story with direct quotes and remembered speeches, at the same time as using prose, using his own words to construct the story. The informal speech and simple language also bring out the simplicity of the speaker and the conversational tone he adopts to connect with his target audience. However, the simple and direct language is also profound and subtle as Leyman speaks of a dearly departed brother and a happier past in the story. The story "The Red Convertible" is rooted in reality, since the events that occur are believable and do not contain elements that hide, embellish and decorate the truth. Instead, the ugly face of reality is seen as the story develops from a hasty decision to buy a car, a pleasant summer (told in the midst of nostalgia), the impact of the Vietnam War, the calling of the soldiers and the post -traumatic stress, family alienation, change, a tragic accident (or apparent suicide), and deep grief. The truth of the narrative is based on word of mouth; however, it is seen that this is not a fairy tale to entertain the masses. Harsh political criticism oozes through the story as Lyman blames the government for letting his brother Henry go to war and become so terribly damaged psychologically and emotionally that he is unable to face his family and the world. Lyman charges that “the whole war was settled in the mind of the government” (Erdrich). The suspectsabout the futility of the war and the government's underhanded support for the war was no secret that the American public attacked. Lyman expresses “life on the reservation roads, which they always say are like government promises, full of holes. It almost hurt, I tell you!” (Erdrich). This candid comment shows Lyman's disillusionment with the American government, the injustice and neglect of the Native American population, and abandonment on reservations. The theme of identity is central to Native American narratives. “The mythical American success story still primarily examines our deepest identity as individuals using the narrative paradigm” (Reid 65). Lyman mourns the loss of a brother and the loss of the convertible: both entities are the same. The narrator rejoices in the person his brother was during the glory days of his youth. The tale 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 war veteran. “Henry returns home in The Red Convertible changed from a debonair young man to a tense, withdrawn shell of a man” (Beidler 178). The title of the story, The Red Convertible, is actually "Henry" as the car becomes almost human and is destroyed when Henry dies. To solidify this point, just look at the connections between Henry and the red convertible. The post-war photo of Henry has “shadows on his face (as) deep as holes (Erdrich) and when Lyman vandalizes the car to get Henry to fix it, Lyman describes that it “looked worse than any typical Indian car… full of holes” (Erdrich). So the brotherly bond between Lyman and Henry carries over to the car. As a war veteran, Henry has been 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. Truly as if he were alive. That car (was) rested, calm and shining” (Erdrich). This red car was in pristine condition just like Henry was before he went to war: in perfect condition. The story sees Henry as the victim who suffers and dies from 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 those 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 also his brother because, although 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 articulate what he feels and achieves a literary catharsis. Henry is a victim of war and its horrific scenes forever imprinted in his memory. He becomes a disability to society and his family, serving as “the prototype of the displaced soldier returning home…the experience of combat destroys one's sense of reality, making it difficult if not impossible to reintegrate into society” (Wong 72). The bonds of brotherhood are very damaged, so much so that every relationship that develops through the car has been shattered. Despite Lyman's urging, Henry would never be able to socialize or hang out with his family like he had before. Erdrich portrays Lyman's character as an ambitious, successful, spontaneous, Native Americaneasy-going, selfless and loves his brother very much. The focal point of Lyman's character is the surrender of the car to Henry, who he describes as its sole owner since his death: “We owned it together until his boots filled with water one windy night and he bought the my share. Now Henry owns the whole car” (Erdrich). The transition from co-ownership to non-ownership is represented by the passage of the book. Lyman's generosity causes the value of material possessions to depreciate while holding the value of his brother Henry and their relationship in high esteem. What he does when the truth hits home that his brother is dead is vital in Native American tradition where "Lyman's driving the car into the river represents the custom of burying a person's private possessions with him dead" (Wong 74). Ultimately this act is a rebuttal when the brothers argued over who should own the car. Lyman rejects the car because the main source of his happiness came from seeing his brother happy, and since his brother died, the meaning of the car has sunk into meaninglessness. The next important feature is that Lyman places his brother Henry as the older of the two at the beginning of the story, even though Lyman is actually the older one. This age reversal only shows the deference and respect for his brother that Lyman thinks he deserves. Lyman terribly abuses the car in a desperate attempt to recover his brother who he lost during the war. As if knowing death was near, Lyman shakes his brother by shouting, “Wake up, wake up, wake up… (Henry's) face was completely white and hard (Erdrich). Lyman's main role in the post-war story is to start the process of resuscitation and recovery since his brother lost his true self due to the Vietnam War. It can be argued that Henry was already dead as what returned after the war was only a shell of the once energetic and carefree young man. Lyman tries to salvage what's left of their relationship by taking a road trip with Henry and giving him the car, in the hopes that it will help achieve a meaningful purpose in life. Lyman's ambition is also a quality he speaks of with pride. He prefaces the story with the fact that he was the first to own a convertible on the Native American reservation. Native Americans are typically poor and insolvent. Lyman reveals this fact as he was good at earning money when he was young. The car is a memorial to his success at the restaurant, which unfortunately ended due to a natural disaster as he spends most of his money on purchasing the car. He boasts that "I was the first to drive a convertible with my reservation" (Erdrich). His business acumen was noted by those around him. He gives the reader a list of his previous jobs: shoe shiner, flower seller, dishwasher, waiter, cook, assistant manager, manager, co-owner and owner, a self-made success. Upward social movement and success distinguish Lyman from his brother and his native society. The car is identified with its success in American society as “the car is clearly an artifact of the industrial world,… and means that Lulu's children are moving rapidly into the international world… the car is a 'an expression of modernity in the white world and an emblem of pride for the children' (Nagel 42). The irony of the story is that the very convertible through which Lyman hopes to bond with his brother is the very instrument that accelerates separation and death. With the hope that the car can help heal.