Introduction
The book ‘I Heard the Owl Call My Name’ was written by Margaret Craven to address the issue of culture clash in the people of Kwakiutl in British Columbia. It was written in the 1960s in the Kingcome village. The protagonist in the book is Mark Brian a vicar, newly ordained by the Anglican Church in his twenties and then he is sent to his most difficult task, among the people of Tsawataineuk, an American Indian tribe. Mark struggles to gain the trust of these people who are also struggling with their usual life against modern ways What Mark does not know is the fact that he has only a few more years to live; his death is closer. Ultimately, Mark is accepted by the villagers and they invite him to stay with them until he dies, as he has accepted the inevitability of his death. Keetah in the end marries Jim instead of Gordon.
Purpose
The purpose of this novel is achieved through the brilliant depiction of various themes that are illustrated in the novel. This novel deals with very serious problems faced by the characters, and it is through these problems that we see the author’s theme illustration.
The author has addressed several themes in the work. The theme of cultural clashing has been highlighted by the fact that it is obvious and unavoidable and that it comes with some tragic effects. The theme of change has also been depicted clearly where the writer has shown that, just like we cannot escape clashes where two cultures are coming together, we cannot escape change in day-to-day human life. The book also brings us to the realities of life whereby we are supposed to understand that as we celebrate life, we should be aware of the looming presence of death. The title of the book brings out the presence of death through superstition, an owl calling the name of a person, which is believed to mean the person will soon die.
Review
During the stay in the village, there are so many things that the vicar learned. The most important of them is the meaning of life. As he lived with these Indians, Mark realized that the celebration of life prepared one for death. When he learned about the death of the swimmer (salmon), he and Jim went to seek the swimmer’s end. In the due course, he gains a better understanding of death. As he reflects on the things he has learned while on a boat trip, he realizes that he has stumbled on the clues that he is dying.
When Mark arrived in the village, the Indians were reluctant in trusting him. This is because they were afraid of the influence that the strangers brought to their land. The intrusion by the white people especially the officials did not bring any positive results. Instead, there were many negative things that they (Indians) took after. The officers for once delayed the burial of the young boy, something that surprised the vicar. When the vicar presided over the burial, he realized that the burial was incomplete. The villagers had their cultural ceremony in which the vicar was not welcome because they had not established full trust in him. The ceremony was conducted in the ancient Elizabethan Kwakwala, which was no longer known to the young (Craven, p. 28). This indicated the effect of the intrusion which had corroded the ancient Indian culture.
We also see that the white people do not like the Indians and they misuse them, for instance, the old man who came and made Gordon’s uncle drunk and then he convinced him to make for him a family mask that was so valuable and underpaid for it, taking with him Ellie, Keetah’s sister. This is demonstrated by the only other white in the village, the teacher. He is only in India because he knows that he will reap some benefits from it; he will get a year in Greece studying their ancient civilization (Craven, p. 33). Apart from eroding the culture and the fact that they do not like the Indians, the Indians have adapted the bad habits from the whites and these include excessive drinking of alcohol. In addition, some very cruel deeds are done to the Indians, the very reason why Mrs. Hudson feels like she will ‘die a little by allowing her daughter to be married to a white man. When it last happened, the girl, who was Keetah’s sister Ellie was found dead from an overdose of drugs, something that explains to the vicar the reason why they wear such a sad look.
However, there are other positive benefits that they get from the assimilation of the white man’s ways. The vicar introduces knowledge to the Indian children, a big benefit to the society. There are also the other things in this land that would have endangered as the vicar wonders what life had been during the days when there was magic and the supernatural spirits and when the cannibal man who lived at the end of the world and dictated the life in the village.
Because the book addresses various themes, the issues in the book are raised by developing these themes. The theme of cultural clash is depicted in three characters- Gordon, who is considered a city boy, Jim, who is a local boy, and the girl that they contest to marry, Keetah. Keetah is undecided whether she should marry Gordon because she loves him or whether she should marry Jim and stay in the village. In the state of indecision, she even goes ahead to marry Gordon and go with him to the city where she even conceives his child. Mrs. Hudson is against it since there has been a case where Ellie, Keetah’s sister was taken by a very old white man and later found dead as a result of a drug overdose. In this same setting, we see the case of immorality brought forward as she (Keetah) has conceived Gordon’s baby and fears that the vicar, Mark, will judge her. On the contrary, the vicar does not do that. Jim does not feel like he has lost it all when she gets married to Gordon. He decides that he will take care of the baby as if it were his own when Keetah comes back. In the end, the issue is solved by Keetah getting married to Jim and hence she stays in the village.
We also see the issue of death brought out. It is portrayed in the story as something that hangs around us throughout our lives. It is not just the vicar who is bound to die. He is only not aware of it as Jim is. It is demonstrated that the celebration of life brings us to the awareness that there is death. That is why the author brings about the death of the vicar and prepares him for it. The vicar is prepared for his death through a foreshadow highlighted by the superstitious culture of the Indians. Even though Mrs. Hudson already knows that the vicar is going to die, she looks for the obvious sign that the vicar does not take long to identify, as a clue for his death. The sign is “the owl calling his name”. In the end, the vicar dies, fulfilling the belief.
In bringing out all these features that we have seen, the author has employed various stylistic features. Foreshadowing is a strong aspect of the novel. More than once, the death of the vicar is foreshadowed; once, it is foreshadowed by Old Marta where she notices her great weariness. The next time is when he witnesses the death of the salmon. It is only while he is reflecting on his acquired knowledge that he figures out that it was a clue that he was going to die. The whole purpose of the novel is highlighted through foreshadowing.
The novel generally looks at the importance of the cultural aspects of a community and their importance. As we see the vicar saying that what he has learned has helped him know that the Indians were people not naïve as they would be assumed to be. They are, instead, people with their own culture that was working for them. By saying that he had learned their wisdom, he implies that they are wise in their ways and that they have cultures that needed to be preserved rather than be eradicated as the white people always made an effort to. In support of this, the way the vicar criticizes the teacher by saying that he should avoid studying the ancient Greek traditions and instead help in the preservation of the Indian cultures makes sense. In the world today, we seek to uncover some very old traditions of some ancient communities in the assumption that they are valuable yet we forget that other current cultures are equally useful and that they are being eroded. We might go after them in the future. To avoid this we can ensure that they are preserved so that we will not have to go searching after them after they are extinct.
This book brings out a strong depiction of the rich culture of the native North American Coast. It can arouse the interest of the reader to look deeper into the cultures of their people and see whether there is anything worth preserving. It brings out the challenge to a man of living up to his culture. However, it does not rebuke any aspect of culture. it has looked more into the negative effects of adopting a new culture for example coping with excessive drinking from the whites and losing the sense of obedience by children. It can easily be dismissed as one that criticizes modern ways, saying that they bring little benefit and more damage.
Works Cited
Craven, M. I Heard the Owl Call My Name. New York: Dell Publishing. 1980