For the Love of a Brother

“The Red Convertible” by Louise Erdrich is a very interesting story, where the red convertible plays a more important role that one might think. It starts out with the brothers buying the car pretty much on a whim. They see this awesome car with a for sale sign in the window, and they just happen to have all of their money on them. So they go in together to buy this car.

The car basically becomes a symbol of the brother’s relationship. They buy this car together, showing both of their efforts to keep their relationship strong. They take the car and go on a road trip that might be considered the best time of their lives, and both of them will remember that trip forever. When they come back, Stephan is sent off to war. Marty doesn’t drive the red convertible when his brother is away. Instead, he puts it up on cinder blocks, and works to fix it up. This shows Marty’s efforts to keep his relationship with his brother alive, even though they are so far apart.

By the time that Stephan comes home, the car is perfect, and waiting to be driven. But Stephan is a changed man. I think because Marty worked so hard to get the car in perfect running order that Marty might have been thinking that he and his brother would just pick up where they left off, because he worked so hard to keep the relationship alive, never mind the time, distance, and experiences that have separated them. But Stephan is a changed man. He will never be quite the same. War has the power to do that to people.

After a while, Marty cannot take this new brother he now has. Stephan doesn’t know how to act in regular situations anymore. He is grouchy, jumpy, and he can’t sit still anytime except when he is staring at the new color television. Marty expresses his frustration with the lack of a relationship with his brother by going outside and trashing the red convertible, maybe thinking that his relationship with his brother will never be the same. I also think that Marty might have been trying to get his brother to act, and not just prowl around like a caged lion all the time.

Marty’s bait worked. Stephan sees the car in such a destroyed state, his relationship with his brother in tatters, and he starts working on fixing the car, and at the same time, his relationship with his brother. He shows the initiative that he wants to still have a relationship with his brother, and he knows that they have always been happiest when they were out together in this car.

Once the car is again in working order, Stephan starts to make an actual effort with his brother. He suggests a trip out in the car. They head out to the river. I think that this trip gives the brothers relief from the tension that was hindering their relationship since Stephan got home. When Stephan jumped in the river, I think Marty knew exactly what Stephan was doing, but he does try to rescue Stephan, perhaps for more selfish reasons than for his brother. After he knows that Stephan is gone, Marty drives the car into the river. This shows that Stephan is taking their relationship with him, leaving Marty with only memories of the good times that they shared.

(Sarah Jaworowicz, Post 2)