70 pages • 2-hour read
Crow Mary
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Symbols & Motifs
Wolfers and the Dog
Content Warning: This section discusses colonialism and colonial violence, sexual assault, alcohol addiction, and death of a loved one.
The text represents the wolfers as a symbol of the destructive and predatory nature of settler colonialism and the dog as a symbol of the Indigenous spirit of resilience. The dog emerges as a symbol of Big Cloud’s spirit. Before his death, Big Cloud tells Crow Mary that wolves are his spirit animal, a spiritual symbol that highlights Indigenous people’s formative connection with the natural world. As Big Cloud’s spirit animal, wolves are his “medicine,” and he vows never to hunt the animals again. In the text, Big Cloud suggests that hunting wolves defies the sacredness of the animal as a representation of the Indigenous spirit. Crow Mary’s vision of Big Cloud establishes the dog as a symbol in the novel. Crow Mary sees Big Cloud gifting her a white dog that signifies her “new life” with Farwell. When Farwell gives her a white dog as a present, she believes that it is “the white dog promised […] by Big Cloud” (50). As a “promise,” the white dog suggests the possibility of hope and understanding between Crow Mary and Farwell, but it also represents her connection to Big Cloud and her culture. The couple’s union, however, is undermined by the wolfers.
The wolfers represent the destroyers of Indigenous land and spirit. Hunting wolves for the lucrative commodity of their pelts, the wolfers embody the antithesis of Big Cloud’s respect for the animal’s sacredness. Stiller is the main wolfer in the text, described as “the worst of [the] wolfers” (112), a trait that establishes them as an antagonistic force. The wolfers abuse animals for profit, and their destructive impact on the land directly affects the Indigenous way of life, limiting Indigenous people’s ability to sustain themselves. The wolfers are also perpetrators of direct violence against Indigenous people, as they instigate the Cypress Hills massacre and rape the Nakoda women. Ultimately, Stiller kills Crow Mary’s dog, an event that alludes to the killing of Big Cloud’s spirit. The wolfers and dog symbols represent the repercussions of colonial contact and the genocide of Indigenous people as a result of settler colonialism.
Alcohol
Alcohol is a recurrent motif in the novel that relates to the legacy of colonialism. Alcohol addiction functions as a metonym for all the harms that colonial contact inflicts upon Indigenous communities. The text indicates that whiskey trading to Indigenous tribes was officially forbidden, but the “law was largely ignored” (73). Alcohol is part of the genocidal impact of settler colonialism. Farwell participates in illegal whiskey trading and even adds strychnine—a lethal poison—to the alcohol traded to the tribes: “The amount we put in doesn’t kill them. It just gives them what they’ve come to expect. It makes their hands and feet go numb” (162). The connotation of “numb” indicates the distorting effects of alcohol on the Indigenous psyche. Alcohol became a colonial tool, a means for white traders and settlers to manipulate and control Indigenous people.
Stereotypes around the prevalence of alcohol addiction among Indigenous people have been dominant in cultural representation. Grissom attempts to counter such narratives by focusing on Farwell’s demise from alcohol addiction. For Farwell, alcohol is also a means “to forget” after the trial about the Nakoda massacre and his isolation within the white community. Farwell’s “white guilt” about whiskey trading is also part of his downfall: “I wasn’t innocent. I made a lot of money trading for liquor” (249). The text indicates that while Indigenous people’s addiction relates to their colonial trauma, Farwell’s alcohol addiction represents his adherence to a colonial mentality.
Nature
The nature motif permeates the novel as a fundamental part of the Indigenous worldview that contrasts with the colonial mindset of white settlers. Throughout the story, Crow Mary’s connection to the land and animals is central to her identity. Despite her alienation and separation from her family, Crow Mary finds a sense of belonging in the natural world. Her mother underscores the significance of being connected to the land before Crow Mary leaves: “You have three mothers. You have me, you have your tipi, and you have Mother Earth” (74). The idea of Earth as a “mother” emphasizes the enduring relationship of Indigenous people with their homeland.
The Crow worldview also proclaims a balanced relationship with nature. Crow people hunt animals for sustenance, not for profit, and they do not kill more than they need. The text highlights the vital importance of the buffalo as Crow Mary describes the tribe’s connection to the animal: “We Crow used every part of the buffalo” (124). Crow Mary performs rituals after killing animals to “thank” them for their offering, suggesting Indigenous people’s spiritual and harmonious connection to the natural world.
The novel suggests that the colonial mindset destroys nature. White settlers have an exploitative relationship with the natural world. The text suggests that the wolfers poison animals, lacing buffalo carcasses with strychnine to poison the wolves and coyotes that feed on them. Crow Mary realizes the destructive impact of colonialism due to her spiritual connection with nature. As she travels to Cypress Hills, she is tormented by “violent dreams” that foreshadow the Nakoda massacre, suggesting that abuse of nature is a central and intentional part of the genocide against Indigenous people. Ultimately, reconnection with nature is crucial to healing. Despite colonial destruction, the Crow land and the tribe’s sacred mountains offer Crow Mary a sense of place and belonging that completes her homecoming. The Indigenous worldview promotes a balanced relationship between people and the natural world, whereas the colonial mindset insists on a destructive belief in human superiority over nature.
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