The Structure Used in Blue Winds Dancing
Tom Whitecloud, the author of the short story Blue Winds Dancing, utilizes a fairly common type of structure to portray the journey of a young Indian man. Whitecloud set the events up in chronological order, although the action is stopped quite frequently to allow the thoughts of the main character to be heard. The entire narrative takes place in the time span of just a couple of days. During these few days, the story is split up into three major sections, with a couple of them having their own mini crisis. In addition to these, Whitecloud carries a dominate crisis throughout the story to maximize the reader's understanding of the young Indian's dilemma. The three main segments include the Indian's home at college in California, his train ride through the southwest, and his reservation in Wisconsin. During the first section we meet the Indian at college in southern California far from his home on the reservation. The narrative begins with the young Indian expressing his strong desire to journey back home to be with his family and his people. The first mini crisis that Whitecloud introduces us to is when the Indian realizes that he doesn't really belong in the white man's world. He says that, "Then again, maybe I am not
After knowing that the physical journey is over, the Indian now has to deal with the main crisis within himself. The third and final section of the story, which happens on the Indian's reservation, is used to elaborate on the major crisis and climax. After visiting with his family he decides to visit the lodge. While he's standing at the door we find the major crisis as he asks himself, "Am I Indian, or am I white?" (141). As he stands there pondering, he remembers a story that was told by his people. The story was about the old woman that was under the ice of the lake. He knows that if he believes in the old woman, then he is an Indian. After thinking for a few minutes he replies with, "I know that there is an old woman under the ice" (141). After reading this statement, many would say that the crisis had been resolved and that the only thing left was the conclusion. However, in this story, some people might also believe that the crisis has not been resolved until he is accepted by the rest of his people. tired. Maybe I'm licked. Maybe I am just not smart enough to grasp these things that go to make up civilization" (138). The climax of this first crisis is realized when
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 804
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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