The Importance of Dreams in Fools Crow by James Welch - Book Report/Review Example

assignment is due James Welch’s famous novel Fools Crow is about the fictional citizens of theBlackfoot nation. The novel presents the happenings of the late 1800s that influenced the people depicted in the novel. The novel was born in the mid 1980’s. The novel reveals the life of an average individual in one particular tribe of the Blackfoot. The protagonist of the novel Fools Crow, is presented as “White Man’s Dog”. The novel takes the readers through the life of this young man. He was the gentle White Man’s Dog in the beginning. We find his transformation to the wise Fools Crow. Fools Crow shows the religion followed by the tribe in a matter-of-fact manner. Readers are left to judge the religion. Readers should decide whether the religion and the ceremonies of the people are effective or not. In the novel, the dreams and visions of the characters are not just illusions. They are rather true events that are as realistic as the real life incidents of the characters. The reader’s belief is assumed in the approach followed in the novel. Dreams and visions play a major role in the novel Fools Crow by James Welch. Several characters in the novel had experienced dreams and visions. The dreams they saw were so realistic that their visions made them predict the future happenings. Visions and dreams come as messages that warn people about the things that are going to happen. The dreams of these characters made them experience both fortune and misfortunes in their lives. Certain dreams predicted the disastrous events that are going to happen in their lives. The first dream we see in the novel is the dream of the Fools Crow, White-Man's Dog. He saw this dream during the first raid towards the Crows. In his dream he saw a lodge in an enemy camp where naked girls are found. He started to wake when one of the girls approached him. After he woke up he felt in his mind that in the dream he wanted to move closer to the girl, however, knew that there was a danger in the direction of the naked girl. After seeing the dream he felt that he should share it with Yellow Kidney, their leader. However his father has told that it is not good to narrate one’s dream to others. After the raid against the Crows the leader Yellow Kidney failed to return with others. He rather returned several months later and explained what made him late. When he entered the camp of the enemies he found the lodge of naked young girls. The girls were carrying white scabs disease. He had sexual contact with one of the girls and almost died. Hearing this experience of Yellow Kidney White-Man's Dog became deeply disappointed. He blamed himself for the sufferings of the Yellow Kidney. He felt "Why hadn't he told Yellow Kidney of his dream? Such a dream would have been a sign of bad medicine and they might have turned back" (Welch 1870 p. 76). Dream represents future happenings as per this strange dream of White-Man's Dog. His dream was a warning of the future events. White-Man's Dog seems to be a message from God. Dreams in the novel have a prophetic nature. When the horse-raiding party was coming home, one of the members saw a dream. In the dream there was a white horse, having blood across its back. The horse had unseeing eyes and split hooves. The horse appears to be a symbol of death. The dream was interpreted and said that Yellow Kidney was dead. Even though Yellow Kidney had not died he was in the verge of death during that time. He was afflicted with smallpox. Heavy Shield Woman, the wife of Yellow Kidney saw a dream that says that her husband is alive. In her dream her husband asks her to set meals for him so that he can gather strength and maker her swear to become medicine woman in the next Sun dance of the tribe. Sun dance is an offering to the Sun God so that he would return home safe. The dream of Yellow Kidney’s wife closely matches the reality. Another dream we find in the novel is the dream of the medicine man, Mik-api. His dream was about the raven. The raven, the bird hears the strange cries of ‘wolverine’, a creature with four legs. The weird creature wolverine moved along one of the caged traps of the Crow. It could not escape from there. When the raven attempted to make the wolverine free he struggled as he had no strength to do it. In the dream we find him telling Mik-api that he is aware of White-Man's Dog and his strength. We read "It will take such a man to release our four-legged brother" (p. 52). Mik-api narrates his dream to White-Man's Dog. White-Man's Dog told he would trace the wolverine and make him free. While going to trace the creature he met the raven. The raven helped him reach the wolverine. The White Man's Dog was scared that the creature may bite him. The creature was bound for four days and was very weak that he was unable to cry out for help. White Man's Dog freed the creature and raven explained him what he should dream "Dream of all that has happened here today. Of all the two-leggeds, you alone posess the magic of Skunk Bear. You will fear nothing, and you will have many horses and wives" (p. 58). This dream made White Man's Dog courageous. After the dream and the task White Man's Dog has never feared any power or magic. Yet another dream in the novel that predicted the future is the dream of White Man's Dog and Kills-close-to-the-lake. White Man's Dog gets a dream in which he encounters the wolverine again. The creature wolverine was held again and White Man's Dog had to make him free again. This time the creature expressed his gratitude to White Man's Dog by presenting him a slender white stone. He asked him to keep it with him in the battle and sing his song. After the creature left White Man's Dog saw someone watching them in the trees. Kills-close-to-the-lake had been watching the scene. She was one of the wives of his father. He had desired her several times. She was in a naked form and did not bother to wear clothes. They were attracted to each other and slept together. White Man's Dog met Kills-close-to-the-lake after few days. She appeared different and had one of her fingers missing. When he questioned her about her finger she told that she also had the same dream and the creature bit off her finger as she was after White Man's Dog. He changed her finger to a white stone. It is the same white stone that he presented White Man's Dog in the dream. Kills-close-to-the-lake further told White Man's Dog that after this incident she kept the stone beside him when he was sleeping for fortune. In these dreams of Mik-api and White Man's Dog their future was foretold. White Man's Dog attained strength, good luck and fearlessness from his dreams. Kills-close-to-the-lake, however, had to face misfortune; she lost her finger. Throughout the novel Fools Crow there are several more dreams that foretell future. Several characters of the novel get dreams that give them warnings about their future. Dreams warn them about the dangers they will face in future. Dreams reflect their desires and the future before them. Dreams of these characters send out messages and make people understand their future. Dreams play a big role in the novel. Dreams and visions of the characters and the influence of dreams in their lives gave a different touch to the novel. The novel explains the importance of sharing dreams with others. If White-Man's Dog had shared his dream with Yellow Kidney he would have run into the trouble. Dreams should not be ignored. Dreams should be properly analyzed to see whether they have any influence on our past, present or future. Dreams reflect our sub-conscious mind. Dreams mirror the individual’s desires and dreams. Dreams should be shared with others as dreams give messages of caution. Dream of one individual may give a message to another person. Dreams can be about the life and future of other people also. People may see dreams that are about the lives of other people. Sharing dreams would thus help people understand their future. Dreams can also make big differences in people. Dreams have encouraged people to achieve many things in life. Dreams can transform into reality. In the novel we see the dreams of White-Man's Dog’ and others transforming into reality. The 2002 movie Skins by Chris Eyre, similarly depicts flashbacks that influence the current events in the movie. The movie tells the tale of two brothers, one being an alcoholic and other a cop. The movie presents the life in Pine Ridge where alcoholism is the major theme. Rudy Yellow Lodge, the cop is well-liked in his police job. His job involves social work and law enforcement. The other brother Mogie is a town drunk. However he has got clear mind that is not blind to the injustices in the society. He is against several followings of the society. Mogie and his friend Verdell Weasel Tail meet at the main street of the town. They drink and discuss various things that are more or less truth. The flashback of the movie helps us understand the background of these two brothers. Both these brothers had a difficult brought up. They both were abused in their childhood. Their father was an alcoholic. The lineage of alcoholism of the Mogie is presented as flashbacks. Mogie might have started his life with more going for him. However, Vietnam and alcoholism destroyed him. The life of these two brothers was established early. Their early life had already established their lives. The general direction of the movie can bee predicted in the beginning itself. Mogie, the alcoholic was jobless. Rudy, the police officer took care of his brother. Rudy loves his brother. He gives him food and money and takes him to picnic. Mogie, is however resistant to all these. He remains as an alcoholic, making fun about the depressed situation of the town people. The flashback of the childhood of the two brothers gives new meaning to the plot of the movie. Like the novel Fools Crow in which dreams played a major role, flashbacks played a major role in the movie skins. When considering the story of the two brothers we understand that their disadvantaged brought up decided their destiny. The abuse they suffered in their lives is reflected in their lives. In the flashbacks we see that the two brothers were inseparable as children. But the life with abusive father and the struggles of reservation life separated them. Finally, we see that Rudy’s action of vigilantism brought harm to Mogie. Spirituality also plays a part in the movie skins. Rudy was bitten by a spider in his childhood. We find Mogie telling him that the creature was Iktomi, a kind of trickster spider. This creature reappears before Rudy in the initial part of the film. We also see Rudy’s courage to move beyond the lines of the law. Later when he is sent as a police man to an abandoned house, he sees the lifeless body of an young man who was killed. He finds somebody in the darkness. They however ran away before Rudy can identify them. While chasing the person Rudy falls into a rock. This brought a doubt in him that the spider had some influence in this event. A friend of Rudy says that the rocks are very spiritual. He feels that something has entered him as he becomes a vigilante. Rudy finds a boy wearing the same shoes as the figure that escaped from the murder scene. He follows the boy and his companion. He hears them asking how to dispose the boots that are used in the murder. Painting his face with black color Rudy attacks the boys, pretending to be the ghost of the killed boy. He later sees Iktomi after removing paint from his face. Similar scenarios are found in the novel Fools Crow also. Encounters with creatures and the results of such encounters are found in the novel. In the novel we find White-Man's Dog meeting the strange creature wolverine. This meet influenced his later life. Similarly in the movie we find Rudy experiencing strange events. Spirituality is a major theme in the novel White-Man's Dog also. Supernatural events and supernatural creatures are evident in the novel. Characters in the novel encounter supernatural creatures. White-Man's Dog and other characters have several divine experiences. The dreams and visions of the characters have a spiritual nature. Fool's Crow is a spiritual character. His quest is spiritual. Fool's Crow encounters several ritualistic initiation. He faces trials, separation, encounter with supernatural creatures, and transformation. We also find him returning to help his people. This gives him a divine touch. His journey is like the journey of Buddha, Mohammed and other spiritual fathers. White-Man's Dog’s dreams and visions have divine revelations that transforms into reality. White-Man's Dog suffers pain for his people. His transformation is also divine. He moves to a higher level of consciousness and shares his visions and dreams with other people. Dreams and visions of the characters in the novel are messages from God. Dreams and visions matches with reality in the novel. References James Welch (1870) Fools Crow. Chris Eyre (2002) Skins. Read More