People of the Whale…..

Running head: PEOPLE OF THE WHALE: DICHOTOMIZATIONS

People of the Whale: Dichotomizations

Márcio Padilha

Lewis-Clark State College

ENGL 258 – Norden

Fall/2010
 People of the Whale: Dichotomizations

Written to illustrate a specific cultural context, Linda Hogan’s People of

the Whale transcends the Native American experience and addresses the

universal human struggle to achieve redemption and completeness in a

world that seeks to fracture communities, nations, and individuals. Set

amongst the A’atsika, an ocean tribal people, who live on the Pacific

Northwest Coast of the North American continent, Hogan tells a story that is

filled with endangered ancestral wisdom, sacred songs and rituals. Focusing

on the divide between the old and the new ways, People of the Whale is

somewhat parallel to Maurice Kenny’s First Rule which primarily

encompasses elements philosophically intrinsic to a perceived natural order

of the cosmos.

In People of the Whale, the plot is primarily developed around Thomas

W. Just’s life, focusing on issues which cause him to feel often so deeply

fragmented that his sense of self is almost completely wiped out.

Additionally, Hogan has incorporated several subplots to the story line which

thereby expands and addresses a multiplicity of correlated themes such as

peer pressure, self-esteem, grief and bereavement as well as broader

environmental concerns.

The first allegory depicted in the story takes place the day following

Thomas’s birth. An octopus emerges from the sea and, literally walking on

land, causes consternation to the A’atsika. Never before knowing of such an

occurrence, the A’atsika, within their cultural spectrum, then perceive the
 People of the Whale…..3

octopus to be an omen implicating that the newly-born boy is destined to

become a great and honorable whaler like his grandfather Witka was.

Despite his neonatal condition, Thomas is thereby faced with his first

dichotomy in that whereas he is expected to give continuance to the

tradition which has preceded his existence, the possibility of growing into a

future of his choosing is not yet necessarily negated at this point. With

endless possibilities, the story starts to unfold.

As the story goes on, the next significant dichotomization takes place

when Thomas, now a young married man, is confronted with identity and

allegiances issues. Divided between being an Indian and an American too, he

is not at peace with the possibility that these identifying traits can coexist

concomitantly. Therefore, envious of his potential, unscrupulous friends

persuade him to enlist in the military at the height of the Vietnam War. In his

drunken impetus of patriotism, Thomas does not immediately realize that the

decision he has taken will squander his potential to live up to his namesake

as the one who “carries the gifts of the spirits” much less that it will also

further fracture his personal identity. Consequently, he will eventually spiral

down into a life of guilt, anguish and isolation.

Going to war represents the next meaningful dichotomization in

Thomas’ life in that his leaving is the sundering moment between his past

and his future. His departure sets a myriad of subsequent exponential

dichotomizations into motion. While departing for war resolves the Indian-

versus-American identity issue, it also entails leaving behind Ruth, his wife,
who is carrying his child. Whereas Thomas then realizes he has no way of

knowing how his decision will change his life with the woman he has known

and loved since childhood, he does know, however, that his leaving will rob

him from being present when his child comes into the world; all of which

would suggest that greater fracturing of his self must be taking place.

Wise in the understanding of her people and her young husband, Ruth

can do nothing but wait for his return while Thomas is swallowed by the

chaos and death so common in Vietnam War. In this interim, however,

another dichotomization takes place. While Ruth develops into a strong, self-

possessed woman who spends her days fishing and defending the tribal

ways, Thomas gradually loses his spirit, becoming another person.

A world away, Ruth gives birth to their son, whom she names Marco

Polo. This is a boy who is nurtured on stories of his father and grandfather,

the whale hunter who honors the creatures who die so that the people might

live. Under the light of this life-versus-death dichotomization, Thomas, unlike

others, decides to stay in Vietnam after the war is over. His choice

represents yet another subsequent spin off the main dichotomization in that

he lets go of his past in order to embrace a future which came along his

identity choice.

As a naturally expected sequence of events, Thomas eventually falls in

love with Ma, a Vietnamese village woman, and ends up fathering a daughter

they named Lin. Years later, however, upon discovering that he is alive, the

US Military goes out on a search mission and, having found him, brings him
 People of the Whale…..5

back home to America. Uprooted from the life he conceived as new, Thomas

is then forced to confront his past back in the United States.

Now a man with two lives and his soul in darkness, Thomas is caught

up in confusion and defeated by what he has seen and done, tormented for

no longer being able to hear the voices of his ancestors.

On a larger scale which is, nonetheless, somewhat parallel to Thomas’

internal conflicts, Hogan further constructs a greater generational

dichotomization which encompasses issues of social order amongst the

A’atsika. Whereas the tribal elders revere ancestral tradition, the tribal youth

have the American hunger for money and power; a dichotomization in and of

itself. Consequently, as the youth, eager to make money, organize an

expedition to slay a whale and sell the meat to the Japanese, the elders

perceive it as a violation of the spiritual dimension of whale hunting and, as

such, fear celestial punishment. Thomas and his son join in this expedition

which serves him a dichotomized purpose. While the expedition brings

Thomas out of hiding with the hope of healing his divided self and restoring

himself to the traditions of his people, a tragic event, as prophesied by the

elders, takes place in that Marco Polo dies. Besides that, there is an

environmental issue which will also ensue.

In its simplest sense, Linda Hogan’s People of the Whale is centered on

healing divisions and correcting imbalances. Although instances of division

abound throughout the book, Thomas personifies the novel’s most evident

example of a divided self. Already torn between tradition and modernity and
America and the A’atsika Nation, he also becomes torn between America and

Vietnam, two wives, two children and two families in a division which is so

deep and exponential that it almost completely wipes out his sense of self.

Telluric in nature, both People of the Whale and First Rule appear to

refer to man’s role within the continuum of cosmic dynamics. Therefore, to a

certain degree, one might argue that both literary works express an inherent

sense of existential quest as to whether man is a mere component or an

active agent within such sphere. People of the Whale consistently suggests

that one’s choices will lead to consequences which, in turn, will lead to a

greater array of choices, a consistent indication which effectively suggests

one has an intrinsically active role as an agent of their own self. First Rule,

on the other hand, significantly shorter in length, suggests that the cosmos

will adjust and self-correct thereby tending to all of its needs and demands.

By explicitly mentioning that “words cannot be spoken first,” Kenny places

man at a much less active role; one who must observe and, while doing so,

integrate his or her self into the pre-established architectural structure of the

cosmos as, despite mankind’s technological advancements, this has been

the coping mechanism which enabled most previous civilizations to endure.

 People of the Whale…..7

Bibliography

Hogan, L. (2008). People of the Whale. New York: W. W. Norton & Company

Ltd.

Niatum, D. (1987) Harper’s Anthology of 20th Century Native American

Poetry. San Francisco, CA: Harper & Roe, Publishers.