The last
part of Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden, has completely changed my prior
judgments about the novel. When I first
started reading this, I felt that it was very boring and lacked any exciting or
interesting plot; I know think about the book in a whole different light. As
the book progressed, the plot and characters were developed in a way that
pulled me in, and made me want to continue reading this novel. In the end, I
thoroughly enjoyed this novel and would definitely recommend anyone to read it.
In this
section of the novel, Xavier still relives his memories of the war when he
falls asleep on the journey back home. In addition, we learn about Xavier and
Elijah’s childhood in the bush through the stories told by Niska. Xavier and
Elijah have been best friends or basically brothers since they’ve been together
in the bush. Also, they learned to hunt and shoot under the watchful eye of
Niska. She says that “the two of them are truly talented marksmen.” (pg 268)
This is also where the competitiveness between the two of them began, as
described Niska :
“The rest of that summer you had shooting
competitions with one another, and I watched how quickly both of you excelled.
You shot at rocks you’d placed upon other rocks across the river, you shot
leaves from trees, you shot the heads from grouse that roosted on the tops of
tall pines. Neither of you missed very often. Your competition was friendly but
serious.” (pg 268)
Up until
this point in the novel, the reader hasn’t been exposed to the reason why
Xavier and Elijah are so competitive with each other, but now it is quite
evident. As children, they competed with each other to practice and for fun,
but at the same time they wanted to beat each other. This is where the jealousy
and need to be the best is rooted and that is why it happens during the war.
Throughout my life, I’ve competed in several dance competitions so I completely
understand the need to feel like you’re the best and I also understand the
competitiveness that is seen between friends. Whenever I competed, I felt like I
had to do better than anyone I was competing against, even if they were my
friends; but that’s what a competition is. You want to be the best. Even though
I felt the competitiveness between friends, I don’t believe that the
relationship between us ever changed. In the end, we all wanted each other to
succeed, and if that meant coming in second, that was still great. I think that
having the urge to be competitive is good, but if winning is the only thing in
your mind, competition can be quite corruptive. Winning isn’t the only thing
you can gain when you compete.
Along with
their childhood, the reader learns about the addiction and hardship of war that
occurred to soldiers at the time. I think that this novel has really opened to
my eyes to how much people sacrifice for the good of others. Niska described
that situation to Xavier by saying, “Sometimes one must be sacrificed if all
are to survive.” (pg 265) This has been highlighted in the history classes I’ve
taken and has been instilled in my mind even more with this book. Another thing
that stood out to me is how alcohol and drugs are used by soldiers. Medication
is obviously necessary for those who have been injured, but the type of that
medication is so strong and is quite addictive. By the end of the novel, both
Xavier and Elijah are deeply addicted to morphine. Xavier says:
“…If Elijah can come back to me, he will help
me. We will fight together again, fight against this medicine that consumes us.
We will get better together. He will help me overcome the pain and I will help
pull him from the war madness that swallowed him whole.” (pg 269)
Everything
that occurs to soldiers in war is always traumatic and most times extremely
painful; a pain that most of us will never understand. On a daily basis,
soldiers see people losing their lives; some of them friends and some of them
not, but seeing someone breathe their last breath is something that no one ever
wants to experience. Even people who have not fought in a war can understand
that the loss of human life is extremely saddening and traumatic. In addition
to mental trauma, soldiers experience physical trauma from all the weapons and
violence that occurs. This is something that Xavier directly experiences when
he loses his leg during the war and has to deal with the excruciating pain
after. The need for medication is urgent for those who are in pain, but the war
causes mental and physical pain for those who were a part of it. Elijah
definitely shows that the war has affected him mentally. This is seen by how he
acts and how he finds a pleasure in killing. Although, the actions of killing
will always be considered wrong, soldiers did what they had to, to keep their
countries safe and free; everyone should be so thankful for that. Lest we
forget.
At the end of the novel, the reader learns about the reason why the letter that Niska received said that Xavier had died rather than Elijah. Xavier had killed Elijah, and had taken his medicine pack with Elijah's name on it. When Xavier remembers what he did, he feels like he doesn't want to be recognized for the things that Elijah has done. He says:
“Why do they call me Elijah? Is this some joke
Elijah plays on me from the other world? I am Xavier. Am I not?” (pg 375)
This shows
that throughout the war, Xavier yearned for the recognition that Elijah had
gotten, but now that he has it, he no longer wants it. I feel that he doesn’t
want Elijah’s reputation or recognition because of all the things that he has
done during the war; none of which Xavier approved of. In the end, I think that
all humans want what they can’t have, but once they end up getting it, they
learn that it was not as nice as it appeared from the outside.