Three Day Road Summary

The Contrast Between Desire and Need
The contrast between acting for personal gain and survival in Boyden’s Three Day Road and “The Wonder and Danger of Mighty Moose River” highlights the need for a physical balance in the environment. In Three Day Road, a contrast is displayed between hunting for personal profit and hunting to survive, which demonstrates the harmony that must be maintained in nature to keep the resources sustainable. While Elijah and Xavier are hunting through the winter to find food for themselves, they discover a herd of buffalo. Xavier’s ingenious way of hunting the animals, by “holding [the branch] above [his] head, [he bends] at the waist and walk[s] out of the tree line, crouch[ing] and swaying… [He] whoop[s] and [runs], and [doesn’t] even stop …show more content…
The reader sees that Xavier and Elijah have killed many buffalo, however this can still be contrasted to the extermination of the forest animals by the Hudson’s Bay Company. Niska describes this desire and how it “[has] instilled in the Cree a greed for furs that nearly wiped out the animals” (Boyden 90). The syntax and amount of detail used in the two passages, create a juxtaposition between the hunts: the description of Xavier and Elijah’s hunt is well developed, whereas the Company’s hunt is given one short but impactful sentence. Xavier’s hunt is described in positive words like “whooped” and natural words like “swaying” and “bark” to reinforce the Cree’s connection with nature. While the Cree have the ability to kill animals in large quantities, they only do this when they are forced to survive, and even then, they waste no part of the animal. Furthermore, this passage uses “and” many times, which creates long sentences filled with imagery and details. When the words are used in this way, the reader can empathize with and understand the human need for survival as they are drawn into the characters’ perspective. On the other hand,