Land and Catholicism in Louise Erdrich’s Tracks

Louise Erdrich’s Tracks aptly reflects the fate of Native Americans in the early period of the twentieth century in connection with land and Catholicism. Erdrich, however, does not openly criticize the government policies or the encroaching white culture and civilization. Instead, she presents us with the tribe’s wretched reality in a restrained control through unique narrative techniques and magical realism. In this process, the three impressive characters who represent three different responses to confront white invasion. Nanapush is an important character as well as a narrater who keeps the tribe’s identity and traditional culture to the end. Pauline represents white culture with civilization through her fanatic religious prejudice based on her own illusion of Catholicism. But Erdrich shows a different type of Catholicism through Father Damien, who understands Native culture and actively helps the Native Americans. Then, Fleur has the most important role to convey the author’s message, although she has no voice of her own throughout the novel. Her identity can be understood only with supernatural powers in connection with the new technique of magical realism. With the creation of Fleur and adopting magical realism, Erdrich asks us to take on a new historical consciousness which helps shape the future.