Louise Erdrich's Fleur: An Analysis

“Fleur” Literary Analysis “Fleur” by Louise Erdrich was written to encompass a cursed Chippewa woman, Fleur Pillager, as she struggles against the oppressing binds of men, race, and society. Since a young age, she was considered dangerous because of the thought that the lake monster of Lake Turcot, Misshepeshu, wanted the girl for himself. Ever since, she’s been out casted not only for her “curse”, but for her ethnicity and her gender. This story is very much like “A Worn Path” by Eudora Welty in the sense of racial and gender conflicts between the characters and society. Both oppressed characters struggle against the psychological frames put onto them. The prime example of this oppressing is while playing poker with the en from Kozka’s Butcher Shop. At this time in history, Native Americans were just pushed into reservations and white males were taking the women out of the reservations to claim as wives. This is shown in both Pauline, the narrator, and Lily, Fleur’s main aggressor. Lily is part White American as well as male, so he treats Fleur with little to no respect. The way Fleur reacts to this disrespect is unlike most women with or without her curse. Modern day women still don’t fully stand up for themselves when men oppress them or give them disrespect. Fleur, however embodies the hate in order to make herself stronger, literally fueling a tornado that destroys her temporary home of Argus, South Dakota. What stands out most in the story is Pauline’s actions towards the end of the story. Pauline looked up to Fleur as what she wants to be. After not helping Fleur when she was being attacked by the three men, Pauline sought revenge by what she did when the men were taking cover from the tornado in the meat locker. Pauline illustrates her motivation to lock the men in the meat locker as the screeching cry of the wind. This wind represents Fleur as she was crying to Pauline for the help she never received. This said ending was very much of a