Yellow Raft in Blue Water

Yellow Raft in Blue Water

Taylor Ray, Theresa Nguyen, Jami Heath, and Murphy Peterson

Rayona

The novel begins with Rayona visiting her mother Christine in the hospital. After a fight at the hospital between her mother and her father Elgin, Rayona and Christine drive to Aunt Ida's house on the reservation, where Christine abandons Rayona at her grandmother's house. Rayona, angry at her mother, runs away and meets a priest of her school, Father Tom. He takes her on a "road trip", claiming to bring her to a retreat for teens. They stop at Bear Paw State Park, where Father Tom molests Rayona. Father Tom encourages Rayona to go back to Seattle instead of returning to the reservation. Instead Rayona stays at the park and finds work. Here, she meets workers Sky and Evelyn and they become the parents she never had. She returns to the reservation and rides in the local rodeo in the place of her drunk cousin. The owner of the horse she rides turns out to be her mother's old fling, Dayton, with whom Christine is staying. Although they are angry at each other at first, Christine and Rayona eventually reconcile.

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-30659678

Michael Dorris

Historical context

Parental Issues

Unhealthy Coping Skills

Half European,half Modoc Indian

All three characters had horrible relationships with their parents

Rayona's section takes place in the 1980's, Christine's section takes place between the 1960's to the 1980's, and Ida section takes place between the 1940's to the 1980's

Spent time in Tacoma, Washington and lived on various reservations

Rayona literally ran away from her problems and tried to start a new life

Rayona basically raised herself since her mother was an alcoholic who cared more about drinking than mothering

Life on Reservations

Created the Native American Studies Program in 1972 at Dartmouth college

Christine drank her problems away and tried to find happiness in men

The story takes place in two different cities and states, it goes between Seattle Washington and the reservation in Montana

Christine felt like she was on the back burner compared to Lee, felt like she wasn't loved

About 22% of our country’s 5.2 million Native Americans live on tribal lands

Reservations have been compared to 3rd world countries

82% are more likely to die from suicide

Alcoholism and depression run rampant

Ida's father cheated on Ida's mother Annie with Annie's sister Clara and then got Clara pregnant

Committed suicide on April 11th, 1997 after accusations of sexually abusing his daughters

Ida suppressed her feelings and never let them out

Ida

Christine

Ida's aunt Clara arrives on the reservation to help with Annie, Ida’s sick mother. Clara gets pregnant with her father Lecon's baby. Clara and Ida then move to a convent, and Ida promises to be the legal mother of Christine at age of 15. The nuns tell her to be called "Aunt Ida" instead of mother, since her and Christine are technically sisters. Clara visits a few times, threatening to take Christine and put her up for adoption, but Ida refuses every time. Several years later, Willard Pretty Dog, returns from the war. Willard was once the most attractive boy on the reservation, but is now rumored to be hideously deformed from combat injuries. Ida helps to take care of him, and then Ida gets pregnant with Willard's baby, with she names Lee. After Willard undergoes serious plastic surgery and is handsome as he was before, he tells his mother that "Ida may not be pretty or smart, but she was there for me when no one else was." Ida is heartbroken and breaks off the relationship between them. Ida lives her life with Christine and Lee, revealing her favoritism towards Christine and her dislike for Lee, claiming he is whiny and always needs attention, contradictory to Christine's belief that Lee is the favorite. Christine and Ida on the roof of their house, awaiting the end of the world as predicted in a chain letter Christine received. Ida does not believe in the letter, but she is willing to humor Christine. The final lines describe Ida pantomiming the action of braiding, symbolizing the intertwining destinies of family.

As a child her and her brother, Lee were very close. They were forced to call their "mom" Aunt Ida because she felt ashamed to have children before she was married. Into their adulthood they both go their separate ways. Lee goes to war and Christine moves to the city. Where she drinks herself sick. After a few years Christine receives a letter from Dayton, lees best friend, of lee's MIA. After hearing the news she goes to the bar and meets Elgin. They end up having Rayona. Shortly afterward their relationship falls apart. She decides to drop her daughter off at the reservation with her mom. After she leaves she goes to stay with Dayton, where she figures out he has been accused of sexual assault. They fall into a daily routine together and soon afterward Dayton brings Rayona back from the rodeo.