Medicine River: Eliminating Stereotypes through Literature

A detailed Summary of Medicine River: Eliminating Stereotypes through Literature

Thomas King is a Native author from Canada with strong opinions on Native culture and how cultures within Canada can coexist in the 20th century. The literary format is extremely effective for expressing one's ideas. In the novel "Medicine River," Thomas King utilizes realistic characters, dialogue and situations effectively to convey how cultural stereotypes of Native Americans are often untrue. This theme is applicable universally wherever a larger culture is dominates a smaller one.

Stereotyping others is a tendency nearly all humans have; however, through familiarity with another culture, these stereotypes are often proven untrue. Gaining a familiarity with those you stereotype may be difficult because it is hard to get over an initial fear of the group. By writing an interesting novel, Thomas King is successful in showing common stereotypes about Natives are untrue. His characters could as easily be white as native.

Part of the way Thomas King creates this familiarity so effectively is by breathing life into his characters through dialogue. The dialogue in "Medicine River" is both realistic and witty and is often made humorous by the narrator's stream of conscience thought about the conversation. This is part

The romantic stereotype of Natives that other people maintain suggests a belief that Natives still live the way they did before the land was inhabited by Europeans. King illustrates that Natives are perhaps not as adept with the their ways of old as many would think by planning a canoe trip for Will and Harlen. The two men last approximately ten minutes in the canoe before capsizing it and getting washed to shore in a frenzy of excitement and glee. This way of eliminating the stereotype was particularly well done because it ties nicely into the story, is humorous and does not feel preachy. By eliminating both of these stereotypes so effectively the reader must come to the conclusion that Natives are just like all other people.

Through the use of realistic characters, witty dialogue, appropriate diction, meaningful situations and supportive flashbacks, Thomas King has expressed his theme in a subtle, yet effective way. The novel "Medicine River" is a valuable tool in illustrating how cultural stereotypes are often untrue.

There are many instances in the book where Thomas King's themes are subtlety paraphrased in a single sentence. If the reader does not keep a keen eye open it is very easy to miss something that other authors would be beating the reader over the head with.

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Approximate Word count = 1309
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels

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