The Antelope Wife :: Education by Design Store

Customer Reviews

An Analytical Outlook to a Magic-Realistic Novel

2000-12-23
The couples, who are likely to become the parents of a little baby, first find a name for that sojourner even before he/she is born. This name usually has to carry positive meanings beneath it, such as the ones from religious, legendary themes which remind people of force ,power, durability etc... The reason is obvious: People all around the world -no matter where they are from or what religion they have etc... - name their children with names associated with strength, stability as they believe -at least want to believe- that those names bring the attribution of the meaning to their children.Naturally, in literature the influence of this belief can be seen. In the novel of Louise Erdrich The Antelope Wife, the protagonists (as there are multiple points of view, I mention here Protagonists) believe that there is a strong relationship between the names they possess and their destiny. The Antelope Wife's impact mostly stems from its different way of narrating. In most of the ordinary novels there is usually one protagonist. In this novel there are many important characters all of whom contribute to the plot. Yet the most vital character can be perceived as the Antelope Wife. Klaus Shawano at first sight, falls in love with her, feels himself compelled to be with her, and begins to follow her secretly. Stubbornly, Klaus keeps on following her, and he manages to catch her; yet she rejects to be with him, and he, not knowing how to make her stay "tie[s] her up" with sweetheart calico. (30). Here, he metaphorically ties her up to himself with sweetheart calico. At the end, Klaus unties her, that is to say, ends his obsessive love affair with her. Richard Whiteheart Beads' story is a bit tragic as his life was performed just the same way as the beadwork's. Richard's last name depends on a naming story,by which the scattered life of him is revealed. According to this story his family name - Whiteheart Beads -derives from the beadworks. In the course of time, the beadwork was scattered, similarly the life of Richard was scattered: "... Whiteheart Bead. That name went until Richard ended up with it" (240) . First, her wife Rozin leaves Richard for Frank Shawano. In the stupefaction of the shocking desertion of his wife, he accidentally causes his daughter Deanna to die. The two distress which come in a series profoundly deplores him. That is to say, his life was ruined just like the beadwork had been ruined, scattered... Thus, apparently, the Indian belief comes true: The name completely influenced the entire life of Richard Whiteheart Beads. The Ojibwa society in the novel also name the animals just like they name their children. The Windigo dog who represent intelligence in the book, manages to escape before they cook him in the stew pot to make soup, by using his ability of intelligence. As he manages to escape the stew pot, the owners of him name him as Almost Soup. The witty dog criticizes human beings: "In Ojibwa language, that is my name and I refuse to give it up for human mistakes or human triumphs" (81). The attempt to emphasize the significance of naming again strikes here, which determines Erdrich's Indian society.

The names of some characters have been changed throughout the novel and these alterations of names have a great deal of contribution to the novel. As the novel is mostly based on dialectical adjustments, the alteration of names have a profound impact on the climax of the events. The one whose name have been subject to these alterations most frequently is the Blue Prairie Woman. Although the name changes, the characters' name still take place in further parts at the story, which means that the new name does not replace the former name. The old name remains active. In my opinion, Erdrich tries to conduct the sense of her concept of dialectical adjustments; the old concept remains even if new one comes out. Erdrich, throughout the novel, uses a lot of Indian words. The usage of these words give the sense of beadwork which also takes part in the novel; as one critic claims the bead-sewing twins are "create[ing] the patterns of the world" (Martin) . The Indian words among the English sentences seem to match thoroughly the beads among the patterns. That is, as the twins create the patterns of the world, the Indian words such as "nibi", "Daashkikaa" etc... create the pattern of the novel -or in other words- maintain the completeness of the novel. When examined attentively, Louise Erdrich implies a figurative meaning using the Indian name of Minneapolis: Gakahbekong. She ,consciously using the Indian name, tends to contrast the permanency of the Indian culture and temporality of Minneapolis, the name which belongs to Newly adopted culture. For, in Erdrich's literature, Gakahbekong represents the old, permanent generation whereas Minneapolis represents the new, the changing and the temporary. Although time changes everything in the world it can do nothing to the real, permanent,special ones such as Gakahbekong. No matter how much the appearance of Gakahbekong has transformed, it still contains the spiritual values inside itself. As I stated above, in Louise Erdrich's magical novel The Antelope Wife, the people believe that there is a strong relation between the names they possess and their destiny. Finally, it is clear that they are right about their belief in names as throughout the story, the names have influenced their lives. Almost for all the characters, their names have an important influence on their lives. In the beginning I mentioned that every society pays attention to names, nevertheless in the Ojibwa society it is a little more emphasized. The names have a great contribution to the rendering of the meaning. Specifically, the place, Gakahbekong, plays a significant role since its meaning serves as a symbolical explanation to the general meaning. With a lot of motives beneath the mysterious characters, two complex family relations, a time which consists of lives of three generations and the important characters like Zosie Roy, Antelope Wife, Richard Whiteheart Beads etc... the novel serves as a guide for the social importance of the names in the Indian society. Finally, as the paper dealt with the naming of characters and the influence of both naming and the alteration of the names to the plot, it helped to reveal the underlying motives in the novel of Erdrich, The Antelope Wife.

A beaded tapestry 2000-10-29
The theme of this Erdrich novel is beaded tapestry and how our lives are smilarly woven into a pattern. She also shows the interweaving of past and present, the animal world with the human world, and myth with reality.

Common wisdom says that narrative should almost always be in one voice and that stories should move in a linear progression. Erdrich, as do many of the best Native American writers, shows that this is not necessarily so. Though I did find myself frustrated sometimes trying to follow the connections of past and present, and how different people were related, it became clear in the end that the tale was told in a circle, and eventually it all made sense. Erdrich does not tie up all of the loose ends, however. There remains some mystery, for example, in the characters of the two grandmothers, which is what gives the story a lasting value and keeps you thinking long after you've finished reading.

The one flaw, for me, though, was that the weavi!ng still had some loose threads. Like the telling of a family history, everything is included, even the parts that are not necessary to the plot. Perhaps I missed something in my reading or interpretation, but I felt that the story of Sweet Heart Calico (the true antelope wife) and Klaus could have stood alone. While it was fascinating and well handled in and of itself, it really was not necessary to the main story. Also the story of the German soldier was a bit superfluous.

Of course, Erdrich was not really writing a family history. She was writing a novel about family histories, and as such, she could have done a little more weeding and honing. In spite of its small flaws, however, this is still a beautiful and well-written work.

A GOOD BOOK 1999-12-03
This was a fairly good book, but the characters were lacking in whatever it is that makes them almost a personal friend . ..Still a good read. If you want to read a book that goes straight to your heart, read Stolen Moments by Barbara Jeanne Fisher. . .It is a beautiful story of unrequited love. . .for certain the love story of the nineties. I intended to give the book a quick read, but I got so caught up in the story that I couldn't put the book down. From the very beginning, I was fully caught up in the heart-wrenching account of Julie Hunter's battle with lupus and her growing love for Don Lipton. This love, in the face of Julie's impending death, makes for a story that covers the range of human emotions. The touches of humor are great, too, they add some nice contrast and lighten things a bit when emotions are running high. I've never read a book more deserving of being published. It has rare depth. Julie's story will remind your readers that life and love are precious and not to be taken for granted. It has had an impact on me, and for that I'm grateful. Stolen Moments is written with so much sensitivity that it made me want to cry. It is a spellbinder. What terrific writing. Barbara does have an exceptional gift! This book was edited by Lupus specialist Dr. Matt Morrow too, and has the latest information on that disease. ..A perfect gift for someone who started college late in life, fell in love too late in life, is living with any illness, or trying to understand a loved one who is. . .A gift to be cherished forever.

Erdrich is back on track with this novel 1999-07-16
I was disappointed in Louise Erdrich's previous novel, *Tales of Burning Love*, which I thought was overly sensationalistic--a bit "Hollywood" for my taste. In *The Antelope Wife*, however, she has returned to an approach that is reminiscent of her first and most triumphant novel, *Love Medicine*. She writes in a style that may be difficult for some readers to accept--no,it's not "obscure" in the sense of a James Joyce novel, but she changes voices, time frames, and situations constantly. The result is a tapestry-like narrative that is uniquely effective, in my view. Erdrich has a way with words that is rare in today's literary world, despite the countless novels that are published annually. Moreover, because of her own Native American heritage, she is able to convey with incredible effectiveness the realities of past and present life and consciousness within those Indian cultures with which she is familiar.

This is a fine work, one that makes me look forward all the more to Louise Erdrich's next book.

Compelling, haunting 1999-01-29
With each book, my admiration grows for this writer. Her attention to detail, characterizations, interweaving of mysticism and reality -- and with all, an original dash of humor laced with sadness. As with Burning Tales of Love, she weaves many disparate threads together, creating a narrative blanket that you never want to unwrap from. I've read everything she's written, and in this day when prizes such as the National Book Award mean so much in sales and recognition, it amazes me that her work isn't at least among the finalists.

wonderful craftsmanship 2008-07-08
I loved how the plot and characters in this book were so intricately woven together. The book left me totally full with imagery and language, and looking forward to reading more of Erdrich's fiction. (I also loved The Blue Jay's Dance - a non-ficiton work)

Oh, Deer Me 2006-10-10
I have admired Erdrich's writing in the past---"Tracks" and "The Beet Queen"--so I was looking forward to reading another of her novels. I must say I was disappointed here. Though Erdrich, like N. Scott Momaday, has a highly poetical style and her pages are filled with beautiful images (which is certainly a positive characteristic), a novel after all needs to have a strong story line or a point. Beautiful sentences and poetic expressions do not make a story, even if spiced with magical realism, sex, recipes, and colorful beads. As a literary testimony to a section of Native American experience, THE ANTELOPE WIFE has great merit. But as a novel, in the company of all the novels of the world, I felt that in this case, Erdrich tried to stretch out her career and write the next book though her heart was not in it. Perhaps it was a bad time in her life. The novel felt to me as one written by a person "trying to be literary". She writes of the mixed and intertwined fates of all those people of the Anishinabe world---Indians, whites, men, women, strong and weak---like beads on a string. The Indians come out holding the short stick. Within this framework, individuals play out their fates, violence and love intermingling with mystery and mundane existence. The characters somehow do not rise above their initial characterizations. The women are stronger than the men for the most part: they endure while the men often fall into alcohol and despair. The author writes in graceful style, but not much depth. I felt---at the risk of sounding snotty---that THE ANTELOPE WIFE belongs more in the category of `chick-lit' than in `American literature'. I once read part of a novel by Amy Tan, but could not finish for similar reasons. I did read THE ANTELOPE WIFE in its entirety, because Erdrich's writing differs favorably from most other authors', but I grew tired of the soap opera quality of this story.

Broken Whiteheart 2005-05-14
This is only the second book by Ms. Erdrich that I have read and the first was a collaberation with Michael Dorris. For me, this book came off as very bizarre (a man breastfeeding a baby) and depressing (betrayal, loneliness and death). But the thin line between love and hate running through the book is compelling. And I enjoy how Louise writes in the POV or about particular characters. She did it in Crown of Columbus and she does it here. I find myself "becoming" her characters as I read each chapter. And the use of the Okijbwa language peaks my curiosity into the culture and lifestyle of these people. I can't rave about the novel because it was so unsettling. But I did enjoy it. She is a talented writer and I can't wait to read her other books.

The power of love 2003-04-30
Lousie Erdrich's writing wraps the reader in intricate strands of symbolism, characters and shifting time and place. Stories are woven, questions are raised and as time passes answered. The strands begin to straighten out and make sense. Re-reading the book to get it all straight is a treat and a gift. I will gladly settle into Erdrich's writing over authors who leave no question marks or connections to ponder any day.

The power, danger and wonder of intense love is but one of the journeys the reader will take in this book.

This is my favorite Erdrich book 2001-07-10
This is definitely one of her best works yet. It is a spellbinding and powerful book.