Wood Grouse on a High Promontory Overlooking Canada by David Guterson: A Short Story Analysis

English Essay - Wood Grouse on a High Promontory Overlooking Canada

When someone mentions the word death, it brings up different feelings in us depending on the experiences we have had with it. The short story written by David Guterson in 1996, tells us about the two brothers Bud and Gary, who are on a hiking trip right after the oldest brother Gary has returned from the war in Vietnam. The story revolves around an accidentally killing on a wood grouse, and how the two brothers react very differently to it.

As the title says, the story takes place in the beautiful surroundings in the mountains near the border of Canada. The setting is described as a very calm, quiet and beautiful place. Gary likes the setting, because it is so peaceful and far from the world in Vietnam. He also mentions that it is a Draft-dodger-heaven (p.1 l. 37). The setting is important, because it shows a contrast between the chaos in Vietnam and the peaceful surroundings, where Bud and Gary are hiking.

The narrator of the story is Bud, and he is the youngest of the brothers. He is 15 years old and very curious about the war his brother has just returned from. Buds view on the war is very childish and unreal, and he does not really understand the seriousness of it. His ignorance about the seriousness of war is shown when re repeatedly asks Gary about the war. I was young and I didn’t know any better. So instead I asked him about the thing on my mind: “Did you kill anyone in Vietnam?” I said. (p. 2, ll. 89-91): Bud has this typical boy-dream about going to war and holding a gun, and he pictured himself as a wild animal hunter when he threw the rock and killed the bird. Bud is in a place between childhood and manhood, and wants to be a grown up man and go to war just like his brother did. Bud is young and adventurous, and it seems, that he has been restless and bored while his brother was away. It is mentioned in the text, that he spends a lot of his time throwing rocks (p.1 ll. 10-13) and that he has been in a fight at School (p. 2, ll. 86-87). This might be a result of boredom and a felling of disappointment over being left behind to throw rocks and grow up, while Gary gets to experience the great adventures of war.

Gary is Bud’s older brother, and he just returned from the war in Vietnam. Gary does not want to talk about the war with Bud, even though Bud is dying to hear about it. He says You don’t want to know and Take my word for it (p.1 ll.7-8), which tells us, that he wants to protect his little brother.
Gary has gained a lot of responsibility from Vietnam and shows it by killing the bird and saving it from suffering. It is clear to see, that Vietnam has changed Gary. He appreciates the small things in life in a whole other way than Bud does. It is shown when Gary tells Bud to stop walking and enjoy the view and when he sees a flock of sheep and asks, Aren’t they beautiful? (p.1 l. 15) There are two incidents in the text involving death, where Gary begins to cry; when bud kills the bird and when he is asked whether he killed someone in Vietnam or not. The crying could be a sign that Gary has not processed all the inputs and horrible things he experienced in Vietnam. It is also a common reaction after you have seen someone die in front of you, which Gary probably has experienced.
Gary likes talking about something else than war. When bud talks about how it has been at home, Gary responds I like hearing all this. Tell me some more Bud(p. 2 l. 88). Gary also liked it when they were laying in their sleeping bags and talking about “useless things” such as astronomy.

In the ending of the story, we get a feeling that Bud is finally getting a more realistic and grown up view on war. He feels ashamed for asking Gary if he killed someone and has trouble falling asleep because of it. He finds out that Gary has trouble with falling asleep too; But later on I found that Gary was awake too, and then we passed the dark hours talking. (p.3 ll. 120-122)
Through this talk Gary finally opens up about his experiences, and Bud is finally ready to understand. The story ends with Bud saying At least we’ve got someone to talk to and Gary responding At least we’ve got that (p.3 ll. 125-126). This shows, that Bud has learnt an important lesson about the seriousness of death and war, and now has the ability to talk with Gary about it, in a more realistic and grown up way.
This particular talk means a lot to Bud, because he now knows a lot more about his brother and how the war has affected him.

So all in all this story revolves around themes like death, war, freedom and growing up. It shows huge differences in the way Gary and Bud reacts to death. Gary reacts very dramatically and begins to cry while Bud, on the other hand, is more chocked over Gary’s reaction than the fact that he killed an animal for no reason. It shows how Bud and Gary’s relationship develops from distant to close, in pace with their individual development. The intention with the story is to show how the experiences we have had, can affect us for the rest of our lives.