Train Time Analyses

The passage highlights the interaction between the main characters, Major and Eneas. In class I sat back to listen and grasp how other students interpreted the reading. I commented on occasions but I was surprised to witness such controversy or difference of opinion on the text. The question still prowls upon us: Is Major a bad person with cruel intentions or is he a sadden soul, who is just “doing his job”. Initially, I assumed Major was a good hearted person that was obligated to do an evil task. By the end of the discussion, I viewed him differently; as one of the students pointed out evidence in the reading that he was “trying to reach the quota”. I am glad we had this discussion because it gave me a new look about the passage. Now I feel as if Major was only telling Eneas what he wanted to hear in order to reach that quota. At the end of the story, Eneas’s grandparents die. The promise made between him and Major was not kept. Eneas did indeed have to worry about his family because Major did not and he was not going to a better place. History shows boarding schools were not equal to living the lavish life for young, Native American children, especially for Eneas because he is such a frail but brave, strong, and daring child. With all the chaos that occured in boarding schools, my guess is that Eneas would not be one to give up his culture too quickly.