Erdrich is first and foremost a sensuous and feminist poet. She adroitly uses the techniques of imagery and symbolism to advance her themes and reveal her characters. She commands the full range of linguistic resources of all levels of English from "literary" English to the more colloquial and common language spoken by the drunken men. The scene of the "dance" of Lily and the old sow, through its setting in the dark and mire of the pig pen, make a powerful indictment of the bestial response of the three drunken men to Fleur and her card playing. Day after day, week after week, she has bested the men in the symbolic combat of poker, winning exactly a dollar each time, no more, no less. Infuriated by their inability to beat "the squaw," they drink and plan their attack, revealing their true bestial natures.

Another of her techniques glimpsed...