Applying Archetypal Literary Theory

In this blog post, we will be exploring and examining the several different character archetypes present in the novel, Three Day Road, written by Joseph Boyden. The three main characters that are going to be discussed throughout this blog are Xavier, Elijah and Niska. Xavier presents himself as “the outsider or the rebel”, Elijah is considered quite a bit of “the trickster” and Niska is obviously “the wise elder or the mentor”. First, we will begin with the archetypes of Xavier.

As I said earlier Xavier seems to the outsider or the rebel. I think he is the outsider or the rebel because for the most part he seems to be part of an out-group while all of the other soldiers are part of the in-group. He wont listen to people who tell him to do something immoral or wrong and sticks to his beliefs because he knows what is right and just. He has a good heart and avoids killing without reason, as well. Xavier narrates: “Me, I’m clearly invisible to the officers. How is it that Breech refuses to recognize that it isn’t only Elijah out there killing Fritz? We are a team.” (Boyden 178). This shows how others do not acknowledge what he brings to the table and even though he is the better sniper between himself and Elijah, all of the other solidiers praised Elijah. Xavier narrates: “Elijah reaches for a broom in the corner, hands it to me, points to the nest.I refuse to take the broom glare back” (Boyden 258). He has a strong sense of justice and willpower standing by his morals regardless of what the others may think of him. Xavier reminds me of a basketball player named, Kawhi Leonard, because from an archetypal perspective they’re both very similar. Both of these people are very humble, reserved and modest for the most part. However, they both excel in their respective skills, Xavier is a phenomenal sniper, probably the best one in the army while Kawhi Leonard is one of the NBA’s best players but as I said both of them are quite humble.

Elijah plays the role of the trickster in this novel, he is very sneaky and seem to be good at tricking people especially the other soldiers around him. He speaks using an English accent even though he is actually Aboriginal to feel accepted by the other soldiers. Xavier narrates: “This is all like a game to him. Elijah can out-talk even the officers with his nun’s English and his quick thinking. The others in our section are drawn to him and his endless stories. I am forced by my poor English to sit back and watch it all happen, to see how he wins them over, while I become more invisible.” (Boyden 65). This quote shows how Elijah is able to trick his comrades for his benefit which is the role of the trickster. As Xavier said, he treats it like a game and can use his words to change people’s minds, even though his current circumstances are that he is fighting a war.

Niska obviously appears to be the wise elder or the mentor to these younger characters. She provides many lessons to Xavier especially as he was growing up because she raised him for a large portion of time. He developed the skills he used in ward through Niska’s teaching while he was still a youth. She offers him wise words of advice even though they may seem so simple but still entail such a deeper meaning. Niska said to Xavier: “Now I tell you this Xavier, to keep you alive” (Boyden 35). This may seem like such a simple message to stay alive physically but I interpreted it as she wants his whole being to stay alive. Once you experience war, those directly affected will be traumatized but she is trying her hardest to encourage Xavier’s mental, emotional and spiritual self to stay alive along with his physical body. She offers wise words to him especially in such a crucial time, when he is addicted to morphine. She cares deeply about him like much of the other wise elders in other stories. For example, I played on a team before and I could tell my coach genuinely cared about each one of the player including myself. He was considerably old but he would not only talk to us about basketball, he would teach us about life. He saw many kids that had an enormous amount of potential but they threw it all away going down the wrong path with the wrong people and he did not want any of us to end up like that. I feel as though Niska felt that way too because she doesn’t want Xavier to change who he truly is due to the aftermath of the war.