Erdrich's inclusion of this case in the novel's introduction speaks to borders and the complications therein, particularly as it affects indigenous life in the United States. Forty-three Gallons of Whiskey, a court case that decided that Congress has the power to regulate the possession and sale of liquor in land belonging to and near Native American tribes.
However, Joe is simultaneously aware of the disenfranchisement of the indigenous population and the insidious injustice embedded in the American legal system.Īs the novel progresses, Erdrich makes various historical allusions that address indigenous justice. Due to his father's profession and his distinguished role within the native community, Joe has a heightened legal and moral understanding of justice. In the opening pages of the novel, the audience is introduced to Bazil Coutts and learns that he works as a tribal judge. Throughout The Round House, Erdrich explores both the concept of justice and its converse, injustice. Finally, Joe's decision to kill Linden is a climactic point in which he must ponder both the motivations and the life-long effects of revenge. Later in the novel, Joe's discovery of the money stashed in the doll's head leads him to evaluate his own morality and reflect on the nature of greed and poverty. Joe's experiences with Sonja show the darker complexities of sex, sex work, and exploitation.
Joe's journey to finding and avenging Linden Lark is filled with events that continue to alter his naive understanding of the world. Joe experiences a shift in focus: he pursues justice and aims to track down his mother's attacker. However, following the attack on Geraldine, Joe comes to recognize the senseless evil that exists in the world. At the beginning of the story, Joe's life is marked by trivial pursuits with his friends-namely, his first sexual experiences and his experimentation with substances. Throughout The Round House, Erdrich juxtaposes Joe's adolescent friendships and behaviors with his forced maturation.
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