When Ida and Christine return home, Ida learns from Father Hurlburt that Pauline is now living with a different family because her parents argue all the time. And Lecon is drinking heavily. He is disappointed that Clara didn’t return with Ida and Christine. Over the next two and a half […]
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Ida immediately takes a liking toward Clara, her aunt, and tries to monopolize Clara’s attentions away from Ida’s sister, Pauline. Ida sees in Clara everything that Ida is not but that Ida wants to be: pretty, mysterious, and urbane. What Ida doesn’t recognize is the sexual tension that lies just […]
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Christine, Rayona, and Dayton become accustomed to each other in Dayton’s house, and Christine and Rayona appear to get along better than they did before. Aunt Ida even visits them and has a nice evening. As an act of healing and — perhaps — love, Ida arranges for Christine to […]
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Christine and Dayton begin a routine life together. Dayton goes to work every day, and Christine stays home; they live a husband-and-wife life together, but they’re not lovers. One day, while Dayton is away at work, Christine finds a hidden package that contains news clippings about Dayton’s alleged sexual assault […]
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When Elgin shows up at the hospital, Christine is combative toward him. Later, she desperately sneaks out of her hospital room and finds her car, intent on killing herself. But Rayona reaches the car just as Christine is about to get into it. The two argue briefly, and Rayona refuses […]
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Realizing that she’ll never have the picture-perfect family life that she wants, Christine accepts a routine existence with Rayona, although she acknowledges that she takes Rayona for granted. She comes to rely on Rayona’s presence and the stability that Rayona symbolizes in her life. Once, when Rayona is almost seven […]
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During the wake at Ida’s, held the day before Lee’s burial, Christine routinely goes through the motions necessary of her, but she realizes that everyone blames her for Lee’s death: She’s the person who manipulatively forced Lee into the armed services. When she asks Aunt Ida why Dayton isn’t at […]
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Christine and Elgin soon drift apart emotionally and physically. Elgin stays out late at night and sometimes doesn’t even come home. Eventually, the two begin to fight about Elgin’s behavior, and Elgin accuses Christine of being a bitch. Christine accuses Elgin of having an affair, which Elgin doesn’t deny. Christine […]
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Christine then hits on a plan to get Lee to enlist in the military. The reservation is run by a council made up of elected members. Christine knows that Lee’s goal is to be elected head of the council, but a draft dodger is not likely to be elected. Christine […]
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Christine’s narration is as much about her brother, Lee, as it is about herself. Lee is the best-looking teenager on the reservation; Christine is not — she’s just popular with the boys. However, she and Lee have a very close, special sister-brother relationship, except that in Christine’s opinion, Aunt Ida […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Christine: Chapter 9