Turtle Meat

By Joseph Bruchac III

Sam LeMoine

Story
The story Turtle Meat by Joseph Bruchac III
revolves around Homer LaWare, an older man, who
is a caretaker for an older woman, Amalia. Amalia
is divorced from her husband and both her and
Homer live on a farm. Homer is a Native American,
and he has a favorite quote from his father, “it’s the
Indian in me”, which he uses rather often to
describe his actions and decisions. Homer is also a
fisherman, and he goes down to the pond nearby,
to fish. Down there, he catches a few fish, until he
spots a turtle, that eventually hooks itself onto his
rod, and they tussle for a long time. In the end he
wins the fight, and slits the turtle’s neck, but not
before it bites onto his shirt and doesn’t let go.
It’s a snapping turtle after all. Once the turtle is
dead, he brings it back with him to the Cabin,
and opens the door to find Amalia’s family
inside. Her daughter, not particularly fond of
Homer, say’s “What the hell have you been up
to”, and he soon finds out that Amalia’s been
taken from him, and sent to a psychiatric
hospital, because she isn’t mentally well. This
upsets Homer, but there’s not much he can say
to the daughter or the rest of the people there,
so he says “I got a turtle to clean out”. Homer
says this in the same tone as “it’s the Indian in
me”, but the story ends before the author can
explain what he means by this.
 Theme Throughout the Story

In Turtle Meat, Joseph Bruchac III conveys love by writing

about Homer’s attachment to Amalia and the separation
that occurs when he’s fishing, and when he kills the turtle.
The turtle symbolizes Amalia and their bond, and when he
kills it, he loses her. In Native American literature, the
relationship between humans and nature is demonstrated
by Homer and the turtle. When Homer kills the Turtle, he is
removing health and wellbeing from his life. Soon after,
when Amalia is taken away from him, due to her declining
health, the consequences of him killing the turtle are
present. He loses the person he loves.
Cultural Background + Author Background
Joseph Bruchac III is from Greenfield Center, New York. He is of Abenaki descent,
which is a tribe that originated in eastern New York. Abenaki means “dawn-land
people” and “people from the east”, in their own language. He founded the
Greenfield Review Literary Center and works as an author and a poet, who has
written over “120 books for adults and children” (Bruchac).
Essential Questions
Nature, spirituality and the relationship between humans and nature play important roles in Native American
literature; animals represent different traits about people or their personal experiences. In this story, the turtle represents
both Homer and Amalia, by embodying him holding on to his past with her, and her eventually having to leave him. The
turtle represents Homer not wanting to let go his life with Amalia.

Native Americans used historical trauma and the legacy of colonization to advance the characterization in stories
across Native American literature. They used phrases such as “it’s the Indian in me” in the story to describe how they are
different from other white people they live with, due to the colonization they faced.

Native American writers address the historical and contemporary challenges faced by their communities, such as
displacement, cultural erasure and social injustices in their literary works by including personal experiences in their writing,
and fighting against stereotypes often brought upon their culture. Joseph Bruchac describes a story about a Native
American man who has been through situations where he feels like an outsider, in which he deals with that by saying “it’s
the Indian in me”.

The concept of identity, including individual, communal, and cultural identity manifest in Native American literature
through things characters say and do, and interactions between each other. Native American authors navigate the
complexities of cultural identity in their works by relying on personal experiences in their stories to show their lives,
particularly when it comes to being part of Native American culture.
Homer
Indirect Characterization
- “It’s the Indian in me” - Homer uses this phrase, something his father used to say, to
describe his actions and why sometimes he doesn’t fit in with society. When people asked
him why he would work for a woman (Amalia), he simply said this phrase, because it helped
to explain to others that his culture was different.
Direct Characterization and Indirect Characterization
- “I understand you, Turtle”, he said, “You don’t like to let go”. This statement by Homer
directly helps the reader understand Homer. He doesn’t like to let go. In the story, he has
kept his life the same for the numerous years he worked for Amalia. When she leaves, he
has to let go of her, and when he walks out after she leaves, into darkness, it is presumed
that something he is going to do something bad to himself, because he can’t handle losing
her.
Amalia

Indirect Characterization

- There was a wicked gleam in her eye. For a few seconds she looked forty years younger in
the old man’s eyes. In these sentences, the narrator describes how Homer has known
Amalia for a long time, and this description is given after she makes a joke, implying that
she and Homer used to have fun joking with each other when they were younger, and that
they’ve always been close.
- She’d never put the property in any man’s name, never would. That’s what she always said.
In this description of Amalia, the narrator is writing about how she has her own opinions,
and although they might not have confined to the typical decisions made by women during
this time, she didn’t care. She was her own person and deserved to be treated with respect
just like the other men who owned property during her time.
Conflict

Man vs. Society - Homer uses the phrase “it’s the Indian in me” to explain his actions and why he
doesn’t fit in with society. When he is living with Amalia, he uses this phrase to describe why he
would work for a woman, and also why he sleeps in a separate bed at night, even though they are
lovers.

Man vs. Man - When Amalia is taken from Homer, he experiences a deep personal sadness,
because the person he has lived with, for such a long time, is gone. This leads him to do
something dark, something the author doesn’t write in the story.

Man vs. Nature - This is an actual conflict that takes place in the story. Homer and the Turtle have
a “fight”, in which he wins by killing it. Unfortunately, because the turtle represents health, shortly
after, when he returns home, Amalia is gone because of her declining health and wellbeing.
 Significant Symbolism

The turtle represents both Homer and Amalia, each in their own different ways. It represents Homer
by highlighting how he doesn’t want to let go of his past with Amalia, when it bites onto his sleeve,
and refuses to let go. It represents Amalia by emphasizing how eventually it does have to let go of
Homer, just like Amalia does when she leaves, even though, like the turtle it’s not by her choice. The
turtle contributes to the culture of Native Americans because like Homer, when they were forced out
of their homes, they didn’t want to let go. Homer didn’t want Amalia to leave, just like the Native
Americans not wanting to leave their friends and family when they were forced onto reservations.

The turtle also represents health and wellbeing, something typical in Native American Literature.
When Homer kills the turtle, he is removing the rest of Amalia’s health present in his life. She is
taken from him due to her having an inability to care for herself. The death of the turtle is the final
straw, without it, Amalia doesn’t have the health to live.
Final Thoughts
I liked reading this story, I thought it was somewhat difficult to understand at first,
but after a while I was able to figure out a theme. I think the author could’ve been
more clear in the ending of the story, I’m not sure I liked how it said that Homer
walked out into darkness, I think that was too vague for a story like this. Whereas
everything else that happened was pretty clearly described, it felt like it didn’t
belong in the story. Otherwise, I’m glad I chose this one, it was a good challenge.
Works Cited! (Most of it was pictures, I wasn’t sure whether to cite them or not.)

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What Are the Rights of Nature? - Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature. www.garn.org/rights-of-nature/.