Analysis of “The Save”

Parker Harding
Story
“The Save” by Joseph Bruchac, follows
the story of an Iroquois boy named
Oren. After making an impressive save
in a game of lacrosse by mistake, he
believes that he was not skilled and
simply made the play because of luck.
When expressing these feelings to his
grandfather, he makes another quick
save when a nearby ATV sends
shrapnel flying towards him, revealing Image courtesy of Dan Gold

that what he lacks is confidence, not

skill.
Theme
Throughout the story “The Save” by Joseph
Bruchac, the main character, Oren, doubts
his athletic skills at lacrosse but discovers
what he truly lacks is confidence. Oren has
a cultural connection to lacrosse because it
evolved from Native American games, so
doubting his skills against a white team is
symbolic of white people eliminating Native
culture in the past and the continued
oppression Indigenous people face. Variations of a traditional Indigenous lacrosse stick.
Image courtesy of Colonial Williamsburg
Cultural Background
The character in this story, Oren, is a young Iroquois boy. Iroquois refers to any
member of the North American Native American tribes that spoke an Iroquoian
language, including the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and
Tuscarora. They lived around the Great Lakes in New York state and Pennsylvania
as well as southern Ontario and Quebec
The Iroquois believed all plants and animals have spirits, so they don’t take any
more than they need from the earth and use every part of the animals they hunted.
They also believed that dreams held meaning, revealing people's desires. Women
were believed to be linked to the earth’s creation for life, and held an honored role
in society.
Today, around 45,000 Iroquois people live in Canada and 81,000 in the United
States, most being a part of one of eighteen registered communities
Essential Questions
How do Native American writers address
the historical and contemporary
challenges faced by their communities,
such as displacement, cultural erasure,
and social injustices, in their literary
works?
Lacrosse as a sport evolved from Native
American games that has now become a
popular activity nationwide. The game was
essentially stolen from Natives by white people,
so the main character feels a responsibility to
win the game to honor his culture. This is
symbolic of the centuries-old oppression
experienced by Native Americans from white
people and the efforts to preserve their culture
and beliefs.
How does the concept of identity,
including individual, communal, and
cultural identity, manifest in Native
American literature? How do Native
American authors navigate the
complexities of cultural identity in their
works?
In this story, the main character doubts his
athletic ability in a game of lacrosse, a sport that
evolved from Native American games. In this
story it symbolizes Native society, so the boy’s
lack of confidence represents the way he feels
about natives in American Society. His
realization of his athletic potential at the end of
the story symbolizes his pride in his culture
Characters
Oren
Direct Characterization
“Iroquois. We’re Iroquois. And
everybody on our team is head and
shoulders above these guys. Except
me.”
It is directly stated that Oren is
Iroquois and he feels a strong
connection to his Native heritage.
This quote also indirectly shows his
lack of self-confidence, as shown
when he says “except me” when
referring to the strength of his team.
Indirect Characterization
“‘Gramps, all it was,’ Oren said, ‘was
dumb luck.’”
Oren tells his grandfather that his
impressive lacrosse play was just
luck, showing his self doubt and lack
of confidence in his athletic skills.
Claiming his success was due to luck
reveals that he believes athletic
ability played no role.
Grandfather
Indirect Characterization
“His grandfather just listened. Then
he waved at the waitress behind the
counter.”
The way Oren’s grandfather interacts
with others shows that he is kind and
patient. He listens to his grandson
talk about his lacrosse game and is
polite and friendly to the workers at
the restaurant.
Direct Characterization
“He’d bet none of them had ever set
foot on a lacrosse field before they hit
middle school. [...] How many of them
had a grandfather like his who was a
legend and an All-American?”
Oren directly states that his
Grandfather is a lacrosse legend,
which indirectly shows that he is
connected to his culture because he
plays a traditional Native game
Conflict
Man vs. Self Conflict
Throughout the story Oren struggles
with self doubt and a lack of
confidence. He believes that his
success was due to luck, not skill. His
self doubt may be symbolic of
society’s views of
Man vs. Society Conflict
In this story, lacrosse represents how
Oren feels about Native culture
because it is a Native American sport.
The struggle against a team of
non-natives symbolizes the
oppression that Indigenous people
have been facing for centuries.
Significant Symbolism
Lacrosse
● Lacrosse is a sport evolved from Native games,
so it has a direct connection to Indigenous culture.
It is symbolic of their society so Oren’s desire to
win the game represents his connection to his
culture and how he feels a responsibility to be
good at it in order to honor his heritage.

Self-doubt
● The self doubt that Oren feels about his lacrosse
skills is symbolic of uncertainty and insecurity he
feels about his culture among white society. The origins of lacrosse. Image courtesy of
Burd Woodworks Lacrosse
Final Thoughts
Throughout the story, Oren exhibits self doubt and a lack of confidence in his
lacrosse skills, which may be symbolic of any uncertainty or pressure he feels
about his culture, as lacrosse evolved from Indigenous games. He feels a
pressure to be good at the sport in order to feel connected to his culture. At the
end of the story, he gains confidence after making another impressive save like
the one earlier in the story that led him to doubt himself in the first place. His
journey of self-discovery shows his pride in his culture, even in a country where
his people have underrepresented and oppressed over the centuries.
Works Cited
Bruchac, Joseph. “The Save.” CommonLit, 2019, www.commonlit.org/en/texts/the-save.
Native Hope. “The History and Culture of the Iroquois.” Native Hope, 13 Nov. 2022,
blog.nativehope.org/the-history-and-culture-of-the-iroquois.

Images:
Aveni, Anthony. “The Indian Origins of Lacrosse.” The Colonial Williamsburg Official History &
Citizenship Site, research.colonialwilliamsburg.org/Foundation/journal/winter10/lacrosse.cfm
Burd Woodworks Lacrosse. “Traditional Lacrosse Sticks - Burd LAX.” Burd LAX, 13 Oct. 2023,
www.burdwoodworkslacrosse.com/traditional-sticks.
Cetkauskas, Augustas. “Abstract View of a Lacrosse Stick Scooping up a Ball.” Adobe Stock,
stock.adobe.com/search?k=lacrosse+background&asset_id=271156611.