Louise Erdrich is known for developing realistic, well-rounded characters whose emotional evolution is subtle yet unmistakable. Her female characters in particular are flawed yet embody a sense of strength, usually dormant until the character is forced to draw upon it for either emotional or physical survival. In the short story ‘‘The Leap,’’ Anna is the…
Tag: The Leap by Louise Erdrich
The Leap by Louise Erdrich – Setting
Erdrich’s Family By 1990, Louise Erdrich had five children, three her husband had adopted prior to marriage and two biological daughters, both of whom were very young at the time ‘‘The Leap’’ was first published. Given these circumstances, motherhood and writing were the two endeavors that required most of Erdrich’s attention. It is quite possible…
The Leap by Louise Erdrich – Narrator, Imagery, Magical Realism
First-Person Narrator Erdrich considers herself a storyteller, and so it is fitting that she tells her stories in first person, that is, using the word ‘‘I,’’ as if she is talking directly to the reader. First person is a more personal way of telling a story; it is the technique used when friends talk to…
The Leap by Louise Erdrich – Themes
Mother-Child Relationships The entire story is a study of the mother-daughter relationship. The narrator credits her mother with her existence even beyond birth, and through recollection, makes clear the ties that bind them together. Although she never directly says it, the way the narrator gives voice to her memory reflects an admiration for her mother….
The Leap by Louise Erdrich – Characters
Anna Avalon Anna Avalon is the narrator’s mother and the story’s protagonist. At the time of the narrator’s recollection, Anna is blind, though she was once able to see. Anna is the character who is most fully developed, the one whose history and emotions are explained and provide the meat of the story. Anna is…
The Leap by Louise Erdrich – Summary
‘‘The Leap’’ begins with the narrator telling how her mother, Anna, is the surviving member of a blindfolded trapeze duo known as the Flying Avalons. Although now blind, Anna never stumbles or falls, never knocks over objects in the New Hampshire home she shares with the narrator, who has come back to her childhood home…