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Captain S. Rogers

Prof. Davis

English 1302

15 June 2017

Symbolism in “The Red Convertible”

Louise Erdrich’s story “The Red Convertible” is a tale of a young man trying desperately to maintain the relationship he has forged with his older brother despite the complexities introduced by distance and diverse experiences. It’s a story of how close relationships offer one perspective on a person and how loss changes that perspective. Erdrich uses the red convertible as a symbol of the brothers’ relationship and the incident with the picture to illustrate how perceptions change over time.

In the first part of Lyman’s narrative, the red convertible is a symbol of the brothers’ intertwined lives. Although they had no concrete plans to purchase a vehicle, they were together in Winnipeg when they saw the car for sale and spent nearly all their money on it. At sixteen, Lyman’s self-identity appears to be wrapped up in his joint ownership of the red Oldsmobile with Henry, as he proudly states that “I was the first one to drive a convertible on my reservation” (Erdrich 442). That loyalty to his older brother was cemented by the summer that they spent together wandering across the Pacific Northwest, just the two of them in the red convertible.

As the story progresses, the red convertible continues to be the touchstone of their relationship, although the brothers’ lives have taken divergent paths since Henry was drafted for Vietnam. During the war, Lyman pours his concern for Henry’s welfare into the car, which he “always thought of . . . as [Henry’s] car while he was gone, even though when he left he said, ‘Now it’s yours,’ and threw me his key” (444). After Henry returns greatly changed by his experiences, Lyman struggles to reach his brother through the red Oldsmobile. Henry’s attempts to repair their relationship can be seen in his efforts to restore the car to it’s former pristine condition. Their final road trip together to the river shows how the red convertible symbolizes the brothers’ connection up to the very end of Henry’s life.

While the red convertible portrays Lyman’s relationship with his brother, the incident with the picture reveals the shift in Lyman’s perspective when he looks back at their relationship. The contrast between their faces that appears so starkly in the photo highlights the differences hinted at by Erdrich earlier in the story, revealing that the brothers’ lives may not always have been as synonymous as Lyman perceived as a teenager. Even before Henry was drafted, Lyman was an entrepreneur and business owner while Henry was an employee at a mill. Certainly after the war there was a weight and heaviness in Henry which Lyman had trouble comprehending. The statement that Henry’s “smile had changed, or maybe it was gone” (445) shows Lyman’s deepening realization that repairing the Oldsmobile hadn’t affected Henry as much as he once hoped.

The red convertible and the picture are very effective symbols of the brothers’ relationship. In their separation during the war, Lyman felt that accepting full ownership of the car would have severed the connection with his brother, which is why the void left by Henry’s drowning is poignantly underscored by the act of driving the car into the river and is the reason he now “walks everywhere he goes” (442). Lyman’s grief causes new aspects of their relationship to appear in his recollection, symbolized by the way he can’t stand to see the picture anymore. Through these two objects Erdrich effectively portrays the struggle of maintaining relationships and the changes in perspective that time brings.

Works Cited

Erdrich, Louise. “The Red Convertible.” Literature: Craft and Voice. Ed. Nicholas Delbanco and Alan Cheuse. 2nd ed. New York: McGraw, 2013. 442-447. Print.