This article by Louise Erdrich for The Georgia Review made me think very in depth about the message the author was trying to convey. Although hard to understand in some of the more vague parts, I felt that Erdrich was trying to put into words the thought that the skunk was the perfect example of how to live fearlessly.
The story begins with Erdrich describing the night she spent on a football field where a skunk comes and sleeps right next to her. A little while after the skunk falls asleep, Erdrich begins to speculate about the skunk's dreams. Is he dreaming of casserole, dogs, garbage, the plot of Moby Dick, or anything even related to humans or skunks? Erdrich states that “We don’t know about the dreams of any other biota, and even much about our own.” This leaves the reader to hypothesize about dreams and how little we know about their meaning.
When she returns to the story about the skunk, she dives in to the meaning of a skunk’s scent. The stink is more than just an unpleasant stench, she believes, it is a symbol of the skunk and its independence. By letting its presence be known in such a simple way, it is almost like a skunk is liberating itself by alerting people to its presence.
Erdrich then explores the journey she herself has taken, from becoming what she calls “urbanized” in New Hampshire to realizing that what she loves is the outdoors and the freedom it holds for her. The deeper meaning behind these memories seems lost to me though. It’s not until she conquers the fear of going inside the fence around the hunting park that the story seems to connect with its beginning.
While contemplating the risks and benefits of getting inside the park, she returns to the mystery of dreams and speaks of Adam Phillips, a psychotherapist who believes that dreams are simply a person’s desires without obstacles. I agree with this statement in a way: without obstacles, a desire is more easily grasped. At the same time, there are still consequences which makes it possible for a dream to not turn out as expected.
At the end of the article, Erdrich says that “We should take comfort from the skunk, an arrogant creature so pleased with its own devices that it never runs from harm, just turns its back in total confidence.” I feel that through this statement, Erdrich gets her point across that, by having one undesirable aspect (the skunk’s stench), the skunk is able to be pleased enough with its other characteristics that it feels almost invincible. True, skunks are not big or strong, feared or admired, but they are able to be one of the most proud creatures by simply living fearlessly and, as the cliché goes, living their lives to the fullest.
