Student Question
What is the nature of the brothers' relationship in "The Red Convertible"?
Quick answer:
In “The Red Convertible,” brothers Lyman and Henry Lamartine Jr. have an easygoing, affectionate relationship. Their closeness is stressed after Henry returns with post-traumatic stress disorder. The bond is restored, if only for a short while, through their different roles in restoring the red convertible.
“The Red Convertible” is the story of two brothers, Lyman and Henry Lamartine Jr., set in the era of the US war with Vietnam. Early in the story, the brothers are close, but their affection is casual and easygoing. They enjoy spending time together but do not think much about their love for each other. Things change drastically when Henry returns from his military service. Not only did he see combat, but he was even a prisoner of war for several months. Lyman can observe but not fully understand the changes that post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is causing his brother. Henry’s work in restoring his car, which Lyman had damaged to make the work necessary, also restores the bond they formerly had. Sadly, they have little time to enjoy this closeness because of Henry’s drowning.
Louise Erdrich shows the reader the easy rapport the brothers enjoy through their...
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experiences traveling around in the flashy car. They seem to take their brotherly bond for granted and do not find a need to discuss it. When Henry is called up, Lyman lovingly cares for his brother’s car; while he misses Henry, he also realizes that he cannot put himself in his brother’s place. Although he tries to connect with Henry when he returns, the PTSD damage puts a huge space between them.
Lyman’s clever plan to force Henry to work on the car demonstrates his love. While he succeeds in getting Henry interested in something, the project is not a cure for his illness. Henry’s love is demonstrated by his effort to give his brother the car just before he dies in the river.
Explain the nature of the brothers' relationship in "The Red Convertible."
At first, the brothers, Henry and Lyman, have a really close relationship. They go in on a gleaming red convertible together, and, as Lyman says, "We went places in that car, me and Henry." They drive all over the place together, even including Alaska! They meet a girl named Susy in Montana and offer to drive her home, and when she says that home is in Alaska, they set off. Once there, Lyman and Henry don't want to leave. They seem to enjoy each other's company and feel relaxed around one another.
However, after Henry is drafted to fight in the Vietnam War, he comes home a changed man. While Henry is gone, Lyman gets the car into "almost perfect shape," always thinking of the car as Henry's though Henry told Lyman it was his now when Henry left. When Henry gets home, he is "never comfortable sitting still anywhere" anymore, not like how the brothers used to be together. Lyman buys a color television to try to give Henry something to do, a loving gesture, but Henry always seems uneasy and tense.
Lyman decides to destroy the car, thinking that he could cultivate Henry's interest in fixing it; this shows how truly loving the brothers' relationship is. Neither has been selfish at all about the car, and it has become symbolic of their genuine care for each other. Despite the changes in Henry's personality and mental health, it is clear that he still loves his brother a lot. Just before he dies, Henry says that "he wanted to give the car to [Lyman] for good now.... He said he'd fixed it just to give it back." Then, in the end, when Henry allows himself to sink into the river, Lyman sends the car into the water after him. Both care more about the other than they do about the car.