The End is Near

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.