What did hockey mean to Saul?
Again and again, Wagamese uses hockey as a symbol for Saul’s life more generally. In Canada in the mid-twentieth century, hockey is viewed by many as a “white person’s game,” and therefore Saul’s love of hockey is symbolic of how different his life is from the lives of his ancestors.
Why was Saul kicked off hockey?
St. Jerome’s plays against the White River team, and Saul leads his team to victory. Father Leboutilier begins to practice and train with Saul. Saul is invited to play for the White River midget hockey team, though he is soon kicked off due to his ethnicity.
How did Saul get a chance to play on the school hockey team?
Leboutilier makes a case to Sister Ignacia to allow Saul to play, telling her that Saul’s talent is a gift from god. Saul thinks of his parents. He wonders if drinking had taken them over as hockey has now taken over him. For a moment, he feels intense anguish, but he knows he’ll find relief on the ice.
How is Saul isolated?
At a young age, Saul’s family is torn apart by white Canadians who steal away his brother, Benjamin, and his sister, Rachel, and force them into a Canadian school system for Indigenous children. Later, Saul himself is kidnapped and sent to such a school.
How did hockey save Saul?
He possesses the uncanny ability to see the spaces…”not just the physical properties of the game and the action but the intent.” This combined with his utter dedication to do anything to get near the game, from rising before anyone else to clean the ice, to collecting frozen horse turds to use as pucks, sets Saul’s …
How did hockey help Saul?
Saul uses hockey as a major escape route and as he plays hockey he stops being reserved and becomes livelier. Hockey helps him forget about his problems. For instance, he said that the game kept him from remembering; that as long as he could escape into it, he could fly away (Wagamese 199).
What happened to Saul’s grandmother?
Tragically, her life comes to an end while she’s carrying Saul through the snow, trying to lead him to warmth. Her death coincides with Saul being taken to St. Jerome’s, one of the milestones of his life.
What happened to Saul Indian Horses parents?
Saul’s parents disappear into an alcoholic, nomadic existence in Northern Ontario mining and mill towns, leaving their remaining boy with his grandmother in the bush, a short-lived idyll that ends when the old woman freezes to death and Saul is sent to St. Jerome’s.
What hockey team did Saul play for?
the Moose
Saul joins an all-Indigenous team called the Moose, who travel to games between Indian reserves, and receives the jersey number 13, “for luck”. Winning a key game, Saul is treated as a star player in Hockey Night in Canada style, but the team faces racial discrimination and beatings afterwards in a pub.
Why did Saul first play hockey?
Saul finds solace in hockey after a seemingly kind-hearted young priest, Father Leboutilier, introduces the sport to the school. Although he is considered too young to play, Saul is allowed to clean the ice in the morning before the other boys practice.
What does Naomi teach Saul?
She taught Saul and Benjamin the traditions, how to hunt, how to harvest food and hull rice, and many other important survival skills. Other than Benjamin, Naomi was the only person Saul could connect to.
How does Naomi influence Saul?
Naomi can be credited for raising Saul on her own due to Saul’s mother and father being distant, caused by depression and alcoholism. In result, Saul places all of his trust, guidance, care, love, and feelings typically associated with parents, towards Naomi.