Power of Storytelling
The central theme of "Fleur" emphasizes the significance of storytelling and the faith in "the story." This theme is a recurring element in Erdrich's works, especially in her portrayal of "ozhibi'iganan, the imagined reservation that appears throughout [her] novels... a fictional place with landscapes and characteristics similar to many Ojibwe reservations" (The Last Report, 357). Nanapush, a prominent male character in The Last Report of the Miracles at Little No Horse (2001) (although he is absent from the short story "Fleur"), expresses it in this way: "There is a story to it, just as there is a story to everything, which remains hidden while it unfolds. Only later, when an old man sits dreaming and speaking in his chair, does the pattern become clear" (Tracks, 34). The "story" mentioned here, and thus the central theme of many, if not all, of Erdrich's tales, centers on survival—of a people, a culture, and a period—and the transformative power of storytelling to preserve that survival. It echoes the story of Lazarus, "come back from the dead, come back to tell you all."
Survival and Resilience
The central theme of "Fleur" emphasizes the significance of storytelling and the belief in "the story." This theme is a recurring element in Erdrich's works, particularly in her portrayal of "ozhibi'iganan, the reservation featured throughout [her] novels... a fictional place with landscapes and characteristics similar to many Ojibwe reservations" (The Last Report, 357). Nanapush, a prominent male character in The Last Report of the Miracles at Little No Horse (2001) (although he does not appear in the short story "Fleur"), describes it this way: "There is a story to it the way there is a story to all, never visible while it is happening. Only after, when an old man sits dreaming and talking in his chair, the design springs clear" (Tracks, 34). The "story" mentioned here, and thus the central theme of many, if not all, of Erdrich's tales, centers on survival—of a people, a culture, and an era—and the transformative power of storytelling to preserve that survival. It echoes the story of Lazarus, "come back from the dead, come back to tell you all." It also reflects the endurance of Native Americans who, despite persistent attempts by Euro-Americans to destroy them, continue to persevere. This theme is further exemplified in the intricate love story involving Fleur Pillager, as detailed in Erdrich's 2001 novel, The Last Report on the Miracles at Little No Horse. In this narrative, we learn that Fleur Pillager marries John James Mauser, a lumberman who tricks the Indians out of their timber, cuts it down, and transports it to Minneapolis to build his house and many others.
Female Power
One of the main themes in Erdrich’s story is the power of women. The interactions at Kozka’s Meats resemble a gender clash, where Fleur, Pauline, and Fritzie each employ unique tactics to manage a violent and dangerous group of men. Bold and fearless, Fleur stands out as the most evident embodiment of female strength, a point Pauline frequently emphasizes throughout the tale. Fleur seems to derive her power from ancient Chippewa spirits, medicines, and charms, as well as her sexuality. This might explain why the men choose to rape her—to impose what they perceive as their rightful dominance over her, driven by their sexism and cruelty. Ultimately, they realize they cannot understand or control her.
Pauline's decision to lock the men in the meat locker reveals her own form of power—the ability to remain unnoticed and then take revenge at the perfect moment. Unlike Fleur, Pauline is shy and insecure, unable to defend herself or Fleur when it truly matters. However, Fleur...
(This entire section contains 355 words.)
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and Pauline share a connection both in Argus and after Fleur leaves. They represent two different forms of female power: one that is direct and confrontational, and another that is quiet and hidden. Fritzie embodies a third type of female power, demonstrating a wife's capability to influence and effectively control her husband.
Aside from Pete, who is so tightly controlled by Fritzie that he can only talk about farming, the male workers try to assert their own power. They look down on women but are ultimately outsmarted by Fleur, resorting to rape as a way to assert their dominance. Erdrich strongly suggests that women hold genuine power, even as they suffer abuse from men (like Fleur being raped, Pauline being forced into hiding, or Fritzie being overburdened). Despite being butchers, the men are consistently compared to the meat and livestock, while the women are portrayed as the ones sharpening knives, carrying packages, and boiling heads. The vivid description of Lily’s struggle with the sow highlights his pig-like nature, and the final image of the men frozen in the meat locker suggests they have been reduced to mere carcasses.
Sexuality
Erdrich frequently emphasizes Fleur's sexuality and appeal, beginning with her near-drowning incident. Fleur's interactions with the waterman/spirit partially symbolize her sexual awakening; Misshepeshu represents a "love-hungry," sexual force connected to Fleur's own sexual prowess. Fleur is depicted as both androgynous and fishlike, with "her hands large, chapped, muscular, Fleur’s shoulders were broad as beams, her hips fishlike, slippery, narrow." Her daring personality, which fascinates and infuriates the men at the butcher shop, is closely linked to her sexuality, particularly on the night she is attacked. She wears a tight, sheer dress and flashes a "wolfish" grin when she wins the card game; in retaliation, the men attempt to assert their dominance by sexually assaulting her. Fleur returns to Lake Turcot, where she has a child and is visited only by Pauline, although rumors suggest she might interact with white men or Chippewa spirits. Despite having a child, she remains unmarried and lives independently, free from male control. The men who try to claim her, whether by rescuing or assaulting her, ultimately meet their demise.
Racism and Sexism
The men working at Kozka’s Meats harbor resentment towards Fleur due to her competence and strength. She consistently outperforms them in cards, disrupting their primary source of amusement, and they also resent her because she is Native American. Tor uses the derogatory term “squaw” to refer to her, implying that as a Native American woman, she should be inferior to them in both intellect and strength, simply because they are men. Erdrich’s narrative highlights the racism and sexism prevalent at the time, focusing on the discrimination faced by Native Americans in the Great Plains. "Fleur" illustrates the widespread racism and sexism of the 1920s, which resulted in significant mistreatment and unfairness.
Survival and Continuity of Native American Culture
Two themes in this story are quite evident. The more important theme—as in Erdrich’s longer fiction—concerns the ways in which Native Americans must struggle to survive and maintain their own cultures. Erdrich as author links destruction, survival, and continuity in the characters of both Fleur and Pauline.
Both Pauline and Fleur are survivors. Fleur is tied closely to both her Chippewa heritage and her white immigrant heritage. In her essay “Where I Ought to Be,” Erdrich says that Native American writers “must tell the stories of contemporary survivors while protecting and celebrating the cores of cultures left in the wake of the catastrophe,” that is, the destruction of Native American cultures by European Americans.
According to Pauline, Fleur has survived two drownings, estrangement from her tribe, and rape. Pauline describes her as being both physically and spiritually strong. “Fleur” concludes with Fleur giving birth—an act that establishes both a literal and a symbolic continuity. For her part, Pauline has survived her mother’s death and the cruelty of her stepfather; her murder of Fleur’s three attackers further demonstrates her strength. Erdrich continues Pauline’s story in Tracks, in which Pauline describes herself as ready to join the convent and become Sister Leopolda; thus Erdrich again presents survival and continuity.
Clashing Cultures: Myth and Reality
The second important theme is the merging of myth and reality through conflicts between traditional Native American and modern Western cultures.
The second theme, that of clashing cultures, also is presented through both women. Pauline explains that Fleur survived her drownings because the waterman Misshepeshu wanted her for himself. Fleur ignored the warnings and traditional advice of the old women of her tribe by dressing as a man does, but at the same time she used half-forgotten tribal medicine. When she went hunting, her tracks turned into bear tracks: Pauline recalls that “we followed the tracks of her bare feet and saw where they changed, where the claws sprang out, the pad broadened and pressed into the dirt.” When Fleur went to Argus, she worked in the white settlers’ milieu, in which she was again mistrusted and punished for being different.
Pauline presents the cultural clash through her blurring of tribal religion and Roman Catholicism. Mixing American Indian and Judeo-Christian religious traditions, she sees herself as a visionary savior. In her mind, Misshepeshu, the Chippewa spirit of Lake Matchimanito, is the same as the Christian devil who is to be chained and thrown into a lake of fire.