Running Away from the Wind

Between Winter in the Blood and “Wounded Chevy at Wounded Knee,” one idea that differs between the two is the idea of what success is on a reservation.

The main Native character in “Wounded Chevy at Wounded Knee,” Mark, believes that success on the reservation is simply escaping from it. “He speaks about getting out of here, going to Rapid City and making a life. He is sick of having nothing to do.” (69)

The narrator’s grandfather in Winter in the Blood, Yellow Calf, has a completely different, more appealing idea of success. He believes that to succeed on the reservation, you cannot run away, and the best thing one can do is survive. Since when does running away make one feel success? “Sometimes it seems that one has to lean into the wind to stand straight.” (69) His idea of ‘standing straight in the wind’ represents the idea of standing up for yourself, but it comes with making yourself visible. Those who are too meek to make themselves visible will not be able to succeed in the reservation.